Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-dzt6s Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-20T01:30:44.517Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Australian perspectives on spiritual care training in healthcare: A Delphi study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 July 2021

Kate F. Jones Open the ORCID record for Kate F. Jones [Opens in a new window] ,
Jennifer Washington ,
Matthew Kearney ,
David Kissane Open the ORCID record for David Kissane [Opens in a new window]  and
Megan C. Best Open the ORCID record for Megan C. Best [Opens in a new window]
Kate F. Jones*
Affiliation:
Institute for Ethics and Society, University of Notre Dame Australia, Broadway, Australia St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, Australia
Jennifer Washington
Affiliation:
St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, Australia
Matthew Kearney
Affiliation:
St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, Australia
David Kissane
Affiliation:
St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, Australia School of Medicine, University of Notre Dame Australia, Sydney, Australia
Megan C. Best
Affiliation:
Institute for Ethics and Society, University of Notre Dame Australia, Broadway, Australia St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, Australia
*
Author for correspondence: Kate F. Jones, Institute for Ethics and Society, University of Notre Dame, PO Box 944, Broadway NSW 2007, Australia. E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Objective

The aim was to to establish core components of spiritual care training for healthcare professionals in Australia.

Methods

This study used the Delphi technique to undertake a consensus exercise with spiritual care experts in the field of healthcare. Participant opinion was sought on (i) the most important components of spiritual care training; (ii) preferred teaching methods; (iii) clinical scenarios to address in spiritual care training; and (iv) current spiritual assessment and referral procedures.

Results

Of the 107 participants who responded in the first round, 67 (62.6%) were female, 55 (51.4%) worked in pastoral care, and 84 (78.5%) selected Christian as their religious affiliation. The most highly ranked components of spiritual care training were “relationship between health and spirituality,” followed by “definitions of spirituality and spiritual care.” Consensus was not achieved on the item “comparative religions study/alternative spiritual beliefs.” Preferred teaching methods include case studies, group discussion, role-plays and/or simulated learning, videos of personal stories, and self-directed learning. The most highly ranked clinical scenario to be addressed in spiritual care training was “screening for spiritual concerns for any patient or resident.” When asked who should conduct an initial spiritual review with patients, consensus was achieved regarding all members of the healthcare team, with most nominating a chaplain or “whoever the patient feels comfortable with.” It was considered important for spiritual care training to address one's own spirituality and self-care. Consensus was not achieved on which spiritual care assessment tools to incorporate in training.

Significance of results

This Delphi study revealed that spiritual care training for Australian healthcare professionals should emphasize the understanding of the role of spirituality and spiritual care in healthcare, include a range of delivery methods, and focus upon the incorporation of spiritual screening. Further work is required to identify how spiritual care screening should be conducted within an Australian healthcare setting.

Keywords

DelphiHealthcare professionalsSpiritual careSpiritualityTraining
Type
Original Article
Information
Palliative & Supportive Care , Volume 19 , Issue 6 , December 2021 , pp. 686 - 693
Check for updates
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Ahmadi, Z, Darabzadeh, F, Nasiri, M, et al. (2015) The effects of spirituality and religiosity on well-being of people with cancer: A literature review on current evidences. Jundishapur Journal of Chronic Disease Care 4(2). doi:10.5812/jjcdc.28386CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Anandarajah, G and Hight, E (2001) Spirituality and medical practice: Using the HOPE questions as a practical tool for spiritual assessment. American Family Physician 63(1), 81–89.Google ScholarPubMed
Anandarajah, G, Craigie, F, Hatch, R, et al. (2010) Toward competency-based curricular in patient-centred spiritual care: Recommended competencies for family medicine resident education. Academic Medicine 85(12), 1897–1904.10.1097/ACM.0b013e3181fa2dd1CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Attard, J, Ross, L and Weeks, KW (2019) Design and development of a spiritual care competency framework for pre-registration nurses and midwives: A modified Delphi study. Nurse Education in Practice 39, 96–104. doi:10.1016/j.nepr.2019.08.003CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Australian Bureau of Statistics (2017a). 2071.0-Census of Population and Housing: Reflecting Australia — Stories from the Census, 2016. Available at: https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/[email protected]/Lookup/by%20Subject/2071.0~2016~Main%20Features~Religion%20Data%20Summary~70.Google Scholar
Australian Bureau of Statistics (2017b). Religion in Australia: 2016 Census Summary. Available at: https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/[email protected]/Lookup/by%20Subject/2071.0~2016~Main%20Features~Religion%20Data%20Summary~70.Google Scholar
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2020). Health Workforce. Available at: https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/health-workforce.Google Scholar
Balboni, M, Puchalski, C and Peteet, JR (2014) The relationship between medicine, spirituality and religion: Three models for integration. Journal of Religion & Health 53, 1586–1598.10.1007/s10943-014-9901-8CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Best, M, Butow, P and Olver, I (2015) Do patients want doctors to talk about spirituality? A systematic literature review. Patient Education and Counseling 98, 1320–1328.10.1016/j.pec.2015.04.017CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Best, M, Butow, P and Olver, I (2016a) Creating a safe space: A qualitative inquiry into the way doctors discuss spirituality. Palliative & Supportive Care 14, 519–531.10.1017/S1478951515001236CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Best, M, Butow, P and Olver, I (2016b) Why do we find it so hard to discuss spirituality? A qualitative exploration of attitudinal barriers. Journal of Clinical Medicine 5(9), 77.10.3390/jcm5090077CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Best, M, Leget, C, Goodhead, A, et al. (2020) An EAPC white paper on multi-disciplinary education for spiritual care in palliative care. BMC Palliative Care 19(9), 1–10.10.1186/s12904-019-0508-4CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bridge, D and Bennett, KS (2014) Spirituality, suffering, and healing: A learning option for western Australian medical students. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management 47(3), 659–665.10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2013.09.022CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cooper, KL and Chang, E (2016) Undergraduate nurse students’ perspectives of spiritual care education in an Australian context. Nurse Education Today 44, 74–78. doi:10.1016/j.nedt.2016.05.020CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hasson, F, Keeney, S and McKenna, H (2000) Research guidelines for the Delphi survey technique. Journal of Advanced Nursing 32(4), 1008–1015.Google ScholarPubMed
Hilbers, J, Haynes, AS and Kivikko, JG (2010) Spirituality and health: An exploratory study of hospital patients’ perspectives. Australian Health Review 34, 3–10.10.1071/AH09655CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hsieh, H-F and Shannon, S (2005) Three approaches to qualitative content analysis. Qualitative Health Research 15(9), 1277–1288.10.1177/1049732305276687CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Isaacs, J (ed.) (2009). Australian Dreaming: 40,000 Years of Aboriginal History. Sydney: New Holland Publishers.Google Scholar
Jim, H, Pustejovsky, J, Park, C, et al. (2015) Religion, spirituality, and physical health in cancer patients: A meta-analysis. Cancer 121(21), 3760–3768.10.1002/cncr.29353CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jones, KF, Simpson, G, Briggs, L, et al. (2016) Does spirituality facilitate adjustment and resilience among individuals and their families after SCI? Disability and Rehabilitation 38(10), 921–935.10.3109/09638288.2015.1066884CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jones, KF, Pryor, J, Care-Unger, C, et al. (2018) Spirituality and its relationship with positive adjustment following traumatic brain injury: A scoping review. Brain Injury 32, 1612–1622.10.1080/02699052.2018.1511066CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jones, KF, Pryor, J, Care-Unger, C, et al. (2020a) Effectiveness of spiritual care training for rehabilitation professionals: An exploratory controlled trial. NeuroRehabilitation. doi:10.3233/NRE-203221CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, KF, Pryor, J, Care-Unger, C, et al. (2020b) Rehabilitation health professionals’ perceptions of spirituality and spiritual care: The results of an online survey. NeuroRehabilitation 46(1), 17–30. doi:10.3233/NRE-192857CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, KF, Pryor, J, Care-Unger, C, et al. (2020c) “Spirituality is everybody's business”: An exploration of the impact of spiritual care training upon the perceptions and practice of rehabilitation professionals. Disability and Rehabilitation 1–10. doi:10.1080/09638288.2020.1820586.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, KF, Paal, P, Symons, X, et al. (in press) The content, teaching methods and effectiveness of spiritual care training for healthcare professionals: A mixed-methods systematic review. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management. doi:10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2021.03.013.Google Scholar
Kaldor, P, Hughes, P and Black, A (2010) Spirit Matters: How Making Sense of Life Affects Well-Being. Preston: Mosaic Press.Google Scholar
Keeney, S, Hasson, F and McKenna, H (2011) The Delphi Technique in Nursing and Health Research. West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell.10.1002/9781444392029CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kingsley, J, Townsend, M, Henderson-Wilson, C, et al. (2013) Developing an exploratory framework linking Australian aboriginal peoples’ connection to country and concepts of well-being. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 10, 678–698.10.3390/ijerph10020678CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Knowles, M (1990) The Adult Learner: A Neglected Species. Houston: Gulf Publishing Company.Google Scholar
Leget, C (2007) Retrieving the ars morendi tradition. Medicine. Health Care and Philosophy 10, 313–319. doi:10.1007/s11019-006-9045-zCrossRefGoogle Scholar
MacKinlay, E and Burns, R (2017) Spirituality promotes better health outcomes and lowers anxiety about aging: The importance of spiritual dimensions for baby boomers as they enter older adulthood. Journal of religion. Spirituality and Aging 29(4), 248–265.Google Scholar
Maugans, TA (1996) The SPIRITual history. Archives of Family Medicine 5(1), 11–16.10.1001/archfami.5.1.11CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McSherry, W and Jamieson, S (2011) An online survey of nurses’ perceptions of spirituality and spiritual care. Journal of Clinical Nursing 20, 1757–1767.10.1111/j.1365-2702.2010.03547.xCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McSherry, W, Ross, L, Van Leeuwen, R, et al. (2020) Preparing undergraduate nurses and midwives for spiritual care: Some developments in European education over the last decade. Journal for the Study of Spirituality 10(1), 55–71.10.1080/20440243.2020.1726053CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Meredith, P, Murray, J, Wilson, T, et al. (2012) Can spirituality be taught to health care professionals? Journal of Religion and Health 51, 879–889.10.1007/s10943-010-9399-7CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Neely, D and Minford, E (2009) FAITH: Spiritual history-taking made easy. The Clinical Teacher 6, 181–185.10.1111/j.1743-498X.2009.00317.xCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Neuman, WL and Kreuger, LW (2003) Social Work Research Methods: Qualitative and Quantitative Applications. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.Google Scholar
O'Brien, MR, Kinloch, K, Groves, KE, et al. (2019) Meeting patients’ spiritual needs during end-of-life care: A qualitative study of nurses’ and healthcare professionals’ percepetions of spiritual care training. Journal of Clinical Nursing 28, 182–189.10.1111/jocn.14648CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Paal, P, Helo, Y and Frick, E (2015) Spiritual care training provided to healthcare professionals: A systematic review. Journal of Pastoral Care and Counselling 69(1), 19–30.10.1177/1542305015572955CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pew Research Center (2012). “Nones” on the Rise. Available at: https://www.pewforum.org/2012/10/09/nones-on-the-rise/.Google Scholar
Puchalski, C and Romer, AL (2000) Taking a spiritual history allows clinicians to understand patients more fully. Journal of Palliative Medicine 3(1), 129–137.10.1089/jpm.2000.3.129CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Puchalski, C, Ferrell, B, Virani, R, et al. (2009) Improving the quality of spiritual care as a dimension of palliative care: The report of the consensus conference. Journal of Palliative Medicine 12, 885–904.10.1089/jpm.2009.0142CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Puchalski, C, Vitillo, R, Hull, S, et al. (2014) Improving the spiritual dimension of whole person care: Reaching national and international consensus. Journal of Palliative Medicine 17(6), 1–15.10.1089/jpm.2014.9427CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ross, L and McSherry, W (2018) The power of two simple questions. Nursing Standard 33(9), 78–80.10.7748/ns.33.9.78.s22CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Spiritual Care Australia. (2020) What Is Spiritual Care? Retrieved from https://www.spiritualcareaustralia.org.au/what-is-spiritual-care/.Google Scholar
Timmins, F and Caldeira, S (eds) (2019). Spirituality in Healthcare: Perspectives for Innovative Practice. Switzerland: Springer.10.1007/978-3-030-04420-6CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Trevelyan, EG and Robinson, N (2015) Delphi methodology in health research: How to do it? European Journal of Integrative Medicine 7, 423–428.10.1016/j.eujim.2015.07.002CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vermandere, M, Choi, Y-N, De Brabandere, H, et al. (2012) GPs’ views concerning spirituality and the use of the FICA tool in palliative care in flanders: A qualitative study. British Journal of General Practice 62(603), e718–e725. doi:10.3399/bjgp12X656865CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
World Health Organization (2007) People at the Centre of Health Care: Harmonizing Mind and Body, People and Systems. New Delhi: World Health Organization.Google Scholar