| Learning Objective #1: Describe in his or her own words the importance of meeting the spiritual needs of poor and homeless mothers who are raising children | |||
| Learning Objective #2: Apply the conclusions of this study about the spiritual needs of poor mothers with children to his or her clinical practice |
Understanding and meeting the spiritual needs of homeless mothers empowers them to overcome their homelessness, enhance their coping mechanisms and foster their mental, physical, and spiritual health. This qualitative study, framed by Victor Frankl's theory about suffering, sought to explore the spiritual needs of homeless mothers with children.
Study participants were mothers living in shelters in a metropolitan area. The variation of shelter type and capacity, location, services provided, and residential mix was chosen to create a heterogeneous sample. Seven tangible expressions of spirtual behavior, identified and defined in the theoretical framework and review of literature, were investigated: connectedness, esteem, faith, forgiveness, hope, meditation/prayer, and trust. Four research questions asked the participants to describe their spiritual needs, how homelessness had affected these needs, what should be done to meet their spiritual needs, and what the public should know about their spiritual needs. A consistant pattern emerged from the data analysis. Two addional questions about which spiritual needs predominated at which shelter and how they varied from shelter to shelter.
Data were generated by observational field notes, focus groups, and essays written by the focus group participants. NUD*IST 4, a qualitative computer program stored, organized, and coded the data.
Findings: Homeless mothers did find meaning in their suffering and they perservered to make life better for their children. The mothers' needs for connectedness, trust and self-esteem dominated the research findings. In their state of homelessness, mothers acquired faith, rekindled their faith, or deepened their faith experience. Humor is a spiritual need.
Conclusions: JCAHO requires that the spiritual needs of clients be addressed. Meeting the spiritual needs of poor mothers is a practical, realistic and cost-effective way to empower women to cope with and to confront their poverty, to combat their sense of isolation and to enhance their compromised self-esteem.
Back to Population Specific Research
Back to 14th International Nursing Research Congress
Sigma Theta Tau International
10-12 July 2003