Spirituality in Nursing

Spirituality in Nursing

Religion and spirituality have close relations but distinct meanings. Religion refers to a set of organized beliefs and practices shared by a group of people (Zaidi, 2018). This statement implies that individuals in faith share a standard set of values and ways of life. The common forms of religion include Christianity, Islamic, Hinduism, and Judaism. However, spirituality is a more personal practice that gives an individual a sense of purpose and peace (Zaidi, 2018). In this case, spirituality depends on what a person considers being moral. This aspect may vary among those people show to share a religion. Therefore, spirituality refers to a more individualized set of beliefs when compared to religion.

Religion and spirituality differ in terms of beliefs and practices. According to Van Niekerk (2018), faith is an organized approach to the mystical reality through human activities. People develop different ways to approach the free environment. In their struggles, they experience strange influences that manifest in various deities. For instance, different religions have unique divine beings like God, Yahweh, Zeus, and Allah, among others (Van Niekerk, 2018). This case reveals that every religion must have a unique deity that guides the behavior of the believers. The divinities provide laws and ordinances that influence the ways of life of the adherents. Spirituality takes a similar ultimate reality as a religion but allows people to search for a transcendent meaning of their lives (Van Niekerk, 2018). In this case, a believer contemplates his or her human experiences that lead to mental satisfaction. Besides, the practice leads to inspiration and energy to lead a satisfying life. Thus, religion allows people to obey the will of a specific deity, while spirituality leads to a higher sense of satisfaction.

From a personal point of view, I perceive spirituality as the practices that make people strengthen their relationship with a deity of their religion. For example, an Islamic believer may consider playing a day thrice as a practice that makes him or her maintain a close association with Allah. This practice may vary from one Islamic believer to the other. In some cases, Islamic adherents consider visiting Mecca shrines as the primary way to divinity. These cases reveal that spirituality is a personal issue that enhances the overall sense of belonging to a religious conviction. I believe that spirituality promotes the psychological and physical well-being of a believer. In different instances, I have observed that Christians who spend more hours praying to God and reading their bibles experience mental satisfaction. They feel motivated to make daring ventures because of the assurance that God will protect them from possible adversities.  Therefore, spirituality refers to the personal practices that make believers feel secure and satisfied with their lives.

Spirituality promotes holistic nursing care since it reduces health disparity and promotes equity. Nurses who consider the cultural beliefs of their patients during care delivery identify factors that may hinder the effectiveness of the care they provide (Campinha-Bacote, 2019). In this case, the healthcare providers recognize the personal beliefs that may lower the psychological well-being of the sick person. Besides, the nurses adopt a unique care plan that promotes satisfaction and improves the recovery rate of the patient.  Cultural competence increases health literacy among adherent believers (Campinha-Bacote, 2019). This statement suggests that learning the spirituality of an individual seeking health care allows a nurse to discuss ways of restoring vigor. Such evidence-based strategies suit the needs of every believer and end ensures that all people access medical quality services. Therefore, considering the spirituality of a patient allows the nurses to adopt customized treatment methods that reduce disparity and inequality.

FAITH is an essential spiritual assessment tool that can promote holistic nursing care. FAITH allows nurses to use memorable themes to address the role of spiritual practices like prayers and meditation in a patient’s life (Blaber, Jone, & Willis, 2015). This tool allows a health care provider to identify the relationship between spiritual beliefs and healthcare decisions of a patient. Besides, this instrument considers the existing relationship between religious beliefs and terminal conditions. Therefore, FAITH is essential since it facilitates patient-centered care planning and promotes the quality of healthcare outcomes.

As a nurse, I would consider using FAITH in attending to the patient. For instance, FAITH would allow me to think about the role that prayers and diet play in the spiritual life of a patient. The practice would enable me to ensure that all patients receive proper meals and have ample time to pray for their recovery. Besides, the tool would ensure that I offer chaplaincy as an extension of spiritual care. Therefore, I would consider using FAITH as a spiritual tool since it supports the effective implementation of chaplaincy and prayer services to the patient.

Ethnic competence is the most appropriate way that nurses can use to address the spiritual needs of the patients. Healthcare facilities should train their nurses on effective ways to address cultural differences among the patients (Campinha-Bacote, 2019). This method requires a health practitioner to consider the religious background of every patient. Besides, the nurses focus on identifying the spiritual needs of each individual under their care. Adequate cultural competence reduces the cases where nurses assume that people from one faith have similar needs (Campinha-Bacote, 2019). In this case, it becomes possible for nurses to rely on effective planning during their care delivery. They count on evidence-based approaches to customize care for every patient. Therefore, cultural competence is a useful tool in addressing the spiritual needs of the patients.+

Nurses can provide spiritual care to non-Christian patients through evidence-based treatment methods. Healthcare professionals should focus on collecting the history of the patient before administering any form of treatment (Harrad, Cosentino, Keasley, & Sulla, 2019). The process allows a nurse to identify the beliefs of a patient and the most important spiritual matters. For patients with chronic illnesses, holding extensive discussions with family members may help to identify the specific needs of a patient. Therefore, nurses who focus on gathering adequate information about a patient can provide proper spiritual support to non-Christian patients.

My personal clinical experience in providing spiritual care involved an Islamic patient. The patient believed that he must hold prayers at noon and three o’clock. I had to reschedule medication to avoid interfering with the patient’s prayer sessions. Besides, I had to consult the patient concerning the rights of meals. The approach allowed me to collaborate with the catering department to ensure that they prepared special meals for the patient.