Paper
Thursday, July 12, 2007
This presentation is part of : Sub-Acute Care Strategies
The phenomenon of spirituality: the experience of palliative care clients and caregivers in engaging with spiritual issues
Joy Penman, MN, BN, MSc (Pharm), BSc (Pharm), Nursing and Rural Health, University of South Australia, Whyalla Campus, Whyalla, South Australia, Australia and Mary Oliver, PhD, MEd, RN, Whyalla Campus, University of South Australia, Whyalla, Australia.
Learning Objective #1: gain an understanding of spirituality and spiritual engagement.
Learning Objective #2: gain insight as to how spiritual care and support might be better provided.
The phenomenon of spirituality: the experience of palliative care clients and caregivers in engaging with spiritual issues
 
Abstract
 
Several authors in medicine, sociology, psychology, philosophy and theology have identified the need to understand the meaning of spirituality and the need to provide spiritual care.  There are at present international and national directives highlighting the importance of recognising and managing spiritual problems.  The interest in this topic is demonstrated by the literature published, especially in the last 3 decades, but others still believe that there is a lack of research delineating spirituality and quality of life matters, particularly concerning people with life-limiting conditions and their caregivers.
 

The purpose of this research is to examine how palliative care clients and caregivers engage in spiritual matters and how this engagement may enrich quality of life.  Gaining a deeper understanding of spiritual issues is paramount for assisting people with quality of life matters and this research stands to uncover personal perspectives from individuals experiencing end-of-life issues, providing insights as to better offer spiritual care and support for them.  Moreover, the research stands to contribute to evidence-based practice in the area of palliative care. 

The research takes a phenomenological approach to interpret participants’ narratives in order to understand their lived experience in framing spirituality and how they engage with spiritual matters.  A purposive sample of twelve participants was used for the interviews.  Their responses comprise the data, which were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim.  Using Heideggerian phenomenology as the philosophical framework, the data were analysed and some of the findings of this research will be presented at the congress.  Important insights gained from this research will be shared with participants, which will be of particular interest to health professionals.  
 

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See more of The 18th International Nursing Research Congress Focusing on Evidence-Based Practice (11 -- 14 July, 2007)