Spirituality Reflection Paper

Evidence has linked a strong relationship between spirituality and medicine. There is a positive correlation between a patient’s spirituality or religious commitment and health outcomes. A spiritual assessment as a part of a health assessment is a practical step to incorporating patient’s spiritual needs into practice. The FICA Tool and HOPE Questions provide serve to assist clinicians in the spiritual assessment process. By examining the research done using these tools, it has been determined that the FICA Tool is easy to use and provides basic data on a patient’s spirituality. The FICA tool is both reliable and valid. The HOPE Questions are

Spiritual care can significantly improve the physical and mental health of nursing home residents. Elderly people are going through a period of life that is set apart by the loss of ability, wellbeing, freedom, and companions. Religious and spiritual individuals regularly utilize their faith and beliefs to adapt to these losses, thus it is critical to keep on providing religious services for seniors who need them. Unfortunately after admitting to the nursing homes, the spiritual and religious needs of residents are often overlooked. (BRIA Health Services, 2016). The Joint Commission- a non-profit organization evaluating the healthcare organizations for quality states, "Patients have a fundamental right to considerate care that safeguards their personal dignity and respects their cultural, psychosocial, and spiritual values" (JCAHO, 2009). Tending to the emotional and spiritual needs of patients, is considered to be a priority quality improvement in healthcare. A nursing home chaplain can meet the religious and spiritual needs of residents, residents’ families, administration, and employees. The purpose of this paper is to provide an executive summary of a project that is creating a position of nursing chaplain, to the Board for approval of funding of the project.

How do your spiritual beliefs apply to your health? The most successful nurses can demonstrate a cultural awareness of self first which then carriers over into a keener cultural awareness of others. This understanding helps a nurse since over the past several decades most health organizations have been encouraged to become more culturally aware of the populations they serve and required to conform to national standards implemented by organizations such as The Joint Commission, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and the National Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services organizations (Potter, Perry, & Stockert, 2016). Cultural self-awareness is a key to help all nurses provide the standard of cultural competent care set forth by the above listed national organizations.

Religion and spirituality is a major essential part of one’s’ health. They have included things such as prayer in healing, counseling, and the use of meditation. Spiritual issues make a difference in an individual’s experience of illness and health. With spirituality, the health care providers can learn to support the values for the art of healing. The health care provider must have respect for their patient’s religion. (Larry Dossey. Healing Words: The Power of Prayer and the Practice of Medicine. Harper Collins, San Francisco. 1993.)

Although this might be helpful in order for us to deliver a holistic nursing care, it should be noted that spirituality is broader than religion. The term religion tends to refer to a more socially organised and structure ways of being spiritual. It provides deep traditions of spiritual practices such as in Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Taoism,

First, Pesut uses the arrangement of her ideas to appeal to the audience’s intellect. The article is arranged through deductive reasoning from broad to more specific, as she first describes the religious cultural context and finishes by suggesting ways to improve individual spiritual care in practice. Pesut states that she will arrange her ideas this way in her article: “I will begin by discussing the context that has created barriers to nursing theorizing about religious care. I will then suggest that this neglect of religious theory has produced a spirituality theory-religious theory gap (…) I will then conclude with three recommendations for integrating theory about religious care into nursing education which complements the teaching of

For health care providers to deliver the best holistic care that patients deserve, a thorough spiritual assessment must be included during their care. With more research showing a relationship between supporting a patient’s spirituality with their health and ability to cope with illness, it is now a requirement of organizations to include a spiritual assessment to maintain accreditation with The Joint Commission. The minimum required of a spiritual assessment by The Joint Commission is to determine the patient’s religion and

For the purpose of this paper, the term spirituality will include the specific adherence to a religious movement as well as broader forms of beliefs (i.e. meaning making, hope and faith, prayer). Spirituality is being considered because of the large role it plays in the lives of some individuals. There isWe see an increase in this number when

Prior to relocating it was so easy making my daily agenda without consulting God and presuming that it was acceptable. While in the transition of relocating though, the necessity of prioritizing and seeking God on a higher level became imminent. Once that transition period was completed I could see how my past behaviors warranted change. Through the hand of God, more in-filling of the Holy Spirit, understanding of his perspective, wisdom, increased knowledge, and peace facilitated the changes.

Spirituality is a delicate topic, and some may not be open to talking about their beliefs. Spirituality is generally understood to be an essential aspect of being human (Lyndo-Lam, 2012). Assessing the spiritual needs of patients is a key component in the nursing process. A compassionate and thoughtful nurse can make a patient feel more secure, making it easier for him to express his spirituality. The participation of both patient and health care provider is vital in promoting spiritual health. The main focus of a spiritual assessment is to gather information regarding the patient’s spiritual needs in order incorporate them into the plan of care, so as to treat

Spirituality is considered one of the components of health and wellness, and is a contributory factor in the delivery of holistic care (O’Shea, Wallace, Griffin, & Fitzpatrick, 2011). It only makes sense for us nurses to study and research spirituality since the nursing profession is committed to holistic development, which includes the spiritual dimension of life. However, elements such as time constraints, short staffing, insufficient formal education related to spiritual assessment and confusion between spirituality and religion have led to spirituality becoming a disregarded component of care (O’Shea et al., 2011). Adolescence is a crucial time in the development of a person’s spiritual path (Benson & Roehlkepartain, 2008). Findings showed that most adolescents hold spiritual or religious beliefs already and choose to draw on them when experiencing life-changing events. Despite this information, healthcare professionals overlook the spiritual needs of adolescents (Neuman, 2011).

“Spirituality is derived from the Latin word spiritus, spirit, the essential part of the person which controls the mind and the mind controls the body. Thus the spirit is the vital life force which motivate people and influence ones life, health behavior and relationships” (Baldacchino & Draper, 2001). She also stated that spirituality is the mainstream of life which unifies all aspects of the human being. Spirituality applies to both believers and non believers, including the presence of diverse cultural beliefs (Baldacchino & Draper, 2001). Culliford stated that : “In times of emotional stress, physical illness, loss, bereavement and death human beings tend to find comfort, peace, inspiration, reverence and meaning by focusing on their spirituality whether they believe in God or not” (Culliford, 2002). In a study conducted by Tuck and Thingajana the meaning of spirituality was voiced by person living with HIV disease and healthy adults. The definitions voiced by the HIV patients were that “Spirituality is relating and believing in God, who is always present. It is perceived as being guided or helped or being inspired or giving unto. Spirituality includes the process of journeying, discovering and centering and is outwardly expressed” (Tuck & Thinganjana, 2007). The definitions of Spirituality expressed by the healthy individuals were that:

Studies of Jesus primarily focus on the duality of Jesus and how he is able to be both human and divine at once. This subject was disputed at the Council of Chalcedon in the year 451 between the

Spirituality plays a very sub sequential role in my personal life. First of all, spirituality helps me govern what is right and what is wrong in my life. Many of the decisions that I make everyday, I believe are a direct result of my spirituality. For as long as I can remember I have been raised to believe that I should live my life the way God would want me to live it. Therefore, whenever I have a decision to make, I have to consider, what is right? And what is wrong? Second of all, it also helps me to feel more secure about what will happen to my spirit once my life here on earth is over. I believe that there is a better place for our spirits once we leave this earth.

Christian Tradition course exposed me to the Christian Tradition based on Biblical and church history. The course taught me the differences and similarities of Christian Tradition from other major world religions. I learned about the significance of God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and the Trinity based on the teachings of the Bible. The course also briefly covered 2,000 years of church history but with emphasis on the impact of the Council of Nicea, Council of Chalcedon, and John and Charles Wesley on Christianity. The professor emphasized the importance of the reformation that sparked a revolution in the church.