Spiritual Care as a Core Component of Palliative Nursing

Abstract

Spirituality is one aspect of the human experience that is unique to each person and may become especially important in the face of life-threatening illness. While evidence supports the need to address spirituality as part of holistic palliative care nursing, it is hoped that "spiritual care" will not become another item on nurses' to-do list, but rather will be part of nurses' everyday lives and nursing practice. Taking time to assess personal needs, and consciously connecting to meaning, hope, and peace, can support nurses' return to the deeper roots of nursing. Addressing spirituality as part of palliative nursing care can also acknowledge the complex and multidimensional experiences of the patients that nurses serve. Connecting, or reconnecting, with nurses' unique sense of spirituality can serve as a powerful resource for resilience. This article highlights the relevance of spiritual care to palliative nursing and offers practical tips to incorporate spiritual care into everyday nursing practice.

Cancer-Related Symptom Frameworks Using a Biopsychosocial-Spiritual Perspective: A Scoping Review

“…Of note, the contribution of a spiritual dimension to understanding and managing cancer-related symptoms was rarely incorporated across the frameworks included in this review. This is an area of high priority given that spirituality has been identified as a central aspect of serious illness care 19,20 and that spirituality has been found to be related to the experience of cancer-related symptoms. 21,45,46 Of note, spirituality has been associated with positive outcomes such as increases in QOL, lower physical and psychosocial distress, lower symptom severity, and lower symptom-related interference among individuals with cancer.…”

“…9,10 Notably, professional recommendations highlight the necessity of incorporating spirituality as part of serious illness care. 19,20 As research in this area advances, there has been a greater understanding of the importance of spirituality within the experience and management of cancer-related symptoms. 12,14,21 Higher self-reported spirituality has been associated with lower severity and interference across several cancer-related symptoms, 12,19,56,57 and mechanisms underlying the supportive role of spirituality are being explored.…”

“…10 With a recent shift toward patient-and family-centered models of care, there is a need to incorporate spirituality more fully into the health care context, yielding potential benefits for patients, families, and clinicians. [19][20][21] Acknowledging the role of spirituality in symptom experiences through adopting biopsychosocialspiritual frameworks can bring cancer symptom science one step closer to understanding and managing symptoms in a holistic way.…”

“…Patients’ unique conceptions of spirituality may serve as a lens through which meaning is made around cancer and cancer-related symptoms, and a healthy sense of spirituality has been hypothesized to encourage patient engagement with supportive self-management behaviors. 20,45,57 Spiritual practices may also be important sources of comfort and emotional regulation amid cancer-related symptoms, which could alter how symptoms are experienced. 21 Overall, incorporating a biopsychosocial-spiritual lens in cancer symptom science can offer a human-centered approach to assessing and addressing complex symptom experiences.…”

Uncovering Methods and Outcomes of Palliative Care for Geriatric Patients: A Scoping Review

“…Journal of Multidisciplinary Healthcare 2023:16 2914 patients, recognizing their physical, psychological, and spiritual dimensions. [63][64][65][66] This comprehensive approach promotes overall well-being, improves emotional resilience, and contributes to a greater sense of comfort and peace for patients as they navigate their end-of-life journey. [66][67][68] The comprehensive care program known as CAREFuL is specifically designed to improve the quality of care provided to geriatric patients nearing the end-of-life.…”