Midwifery to the soul while the body dies: Spiritual care among hospice nurses

Abstract

Because attitudes and beliefs about spiritual care have been linked with spiritual caregiving practices in previous research among non-hospice nurses, and because little is known about hospice nurses’ attitudes and beliefs about spiritual care, this study explored such attitudes and beliefs among hospice nurses. Data were obtained from 641 Hospice Nurses Association members who completed the Spiritual Care Perspectives Survey and a demographic form. While respondents rather uniformly agreed that patients had spiritual needs and that it was appropriate for nurses to attend to such needs, attitudes about how a nurse should relate to patients’ spirituality were variable. Education and indicators reflecting personal religiosity were associated with these hospice nurses’ attitudes and beliefs about spiritual care.