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Defining Spiritual Care: An Exploratory Study

Primary Author: Leonard Hummel, The Luthern Theological Seminary at Gettysburg, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

Report of a literature review looking at definitions and categories of spiritual care. The authors found that most of the interventions could be grouped into several general categories and "only a few of these categories encompass explicitly religious or spiritual interventions." They also found that "there is common
ground among nurses and chaplains about what constitutes spiritual care and what that care entails."

This article was published in the Journal of Health Care Chaplaincy, volume 15 on pages 40-51.

Date Last Modified 01/01/2008 Article

Definition of Terms: Spirituality versus Religiousness

Primary Author: Conrad C. Daly, East Tennessee State University

Article from the Southern Medical Journal (Volume 98, Number 12) seeking to clarify the meaning of the terms religiousness and spirituality.

Date Last Modified 12/01/2005 Article

Elder Abuse and Neglect: Clergy Awareness, Knowledge, Intervention Preferences, and Perceived Severity

Primary Author: John D. Rudnick, Jr., Thomas More College

Because elder abuse victims, abusers, and stakeholders often seek help from trusted faith-based entities, clergy need to be adequately prepared with appropriate intervention responses, concept awareness and knowledge concerning elder abuse and neglect as an emerging health and social crisis (University of Kentucky, 2007). This presentation is based on a study that explored issues related to the general research question: "What is the perceived level of elder abuse and neglect awareness, knowledge and intervention preferences among Protestant clergy in Kentucky?
Survey responses were paired to examine relationships between demographic characteristics and the facets measured--awareness, knowledge intervention preferences, and perceived severity of elder abuse and neglect. Overall, clergy were generally not aware of their responsibilities and lacked detailed knowledge about elder abuse and neglect. Recommended areas for future research linked to awareness, knowledge, intervention responses and perceived severity are provided.

Date Last Modified 04/14/2010 Lecture presentation, Case example/study

The Essential Elements of Spirituality in the End-of-Life Care

Primary Author: Katrina M. Scott, MDiv, BCC, Massachusetts General Hospital

The National Consensus Projects Clinical Practice Guidelines for Quality Palliative Care, published in 2004, defines eight domains of care essential to palliative care clinical practice. The National Quality Forums 2006 document, A National Framework and Preferred Practices for Palliative and Hospice Care Quality: A Consensus Report, which is based on the Guidelines, identifies 38 evidence-based preferred practices for palliative care. This article demonstrates how the Guidelines and Preferred Practices may be operationalized in practice, focusing specifically on Domain 5 of the Guidelines, Spiritual, Religious and Existential Aspects of Care, which incorporates many pertinent aspects of hospice and palliative care related to addressing the spiritual needs of the dying patient and his or her family. In particular, the article addresses methods for assessing the need for spiritual care; methods for communicating with the patient and family about the need for spiritual care; the role of the spiritual adviser on the interdisciplinary palliative care team; the advantages of including certified chaplains on the palliative team; the need for sensitivity toward culture and religious diversity in administering spiritual care; the need for specialized palliative care spiritual advisors to build relationships with community clergy; and more.

Date Last Modified 09/01/2008 Article, Clinical practice guidelines

Evaluating your Spiritual Assessment Process

Primary Author: The Joint Commission

Two page article from the Joint Commission that discusses Joint Commission requirements for spiritual assessment. Topics include barriers to spiritual assessment, who should conduct a spiritual assessment, why assess spirituality, approaches to determining spiritual assessment content, and ensuring the competence of those conducting spiritual assessments.

From Joint Commission: The Source, February 2005, Volume 3, Issue 2.

Date Last Modified 02/01/2005 Article