The assessment and audit of spiritual care

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Abstract
In today’s healthcare environment nurses are increasingly involved in assessing, evaluating, and auditing the care they provide. There is some evidence to suggest that spiritual care is poorly undertaken in palliative care units (Gray, 1994). This article details and discusses a scale which has been designed to assess the patient’s spiritual status. This study showed that the majority of patients including non-Christians and agnostics felt that their spirituality had positively helped them to cope with their illness. Health professionals need to ensure that patients are supported in their existing beliefs and during their spiritual journey rather than adopting a problem-solving approach to spiritual care, i.e. offering them active intervention which may often be inappropriate. Patients were given a questionnaire which included questions about prayer, religious services and the laying on of hands for healing. The majority of patients wanted all of these services and therefore further examination of such needs is warranted.