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Spiritual wellbeing is known to be a predictor of increased patient coping in hospital settings. Therefore, access to a valid and reliable measure of spiritual wellbeing amongst general hospital patients is highly recommended. The aim of this study was to investigate the dimensionality, reliability, and validity of the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy Spiritual Wellbeing scale (FACIT-Sp-12) in a heterogeneous cohort of hospital patients. A cross-sectional survey was administered to 897 adult patients across six hospitals in Sydney, Australia. Confirmatory factor analysis for the three-factor FACIT-12-Sp indicated a poor fit, but after removal of Item 12, the three-factor FACIT-11-Sp presented a good fit to the data. Reliability testing indicated acceptable to good internal consistency. Validity was supported by statistically significant differences between patients who considered themselves 'both spiritual and religious' and 'not religious or spiritual'. While some caution should be taken when using the FACIT-Sp due to several limitations, nevertheless, in a general hospital population in Australia, the three-factor FACIT-11-Sp indicated good dimensionality, reliability, and validity., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

While there is high patient acceptance for clinical staff discussing issues regarding spirituality with hospital inpatients, it is not clear which staff member patients prefer for these discussions. This unique exploratory study investigated inpatient preferences regarding which staff member should raise the topic of spirituality. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with inpatients at six hospitals in Sydney, Australia (n = 897), with a subset invited to participate in qualitative interviews (n = 41). Pastoral care staff (32.9%) were the preferred staff members with whom to discuss spiritual issues, followed by doctors (22.4%). Qualitative findings indicated that individual characteristics of the staff member are more important than their role., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

The aim of this study was to evaluate a new spiritual care training program with health and aged care staff. A four-module program was delivered to 44 participants at a large Catholic health and aged care provider in Australia. Pre, post and 6 week follow-up surveys were administered and included measures of spiritual care competency, confidence, perspectives of spirituality and spiritual care, spiritual well-being, and satisfaction. Paired sample t-tests showed total scores of participants' spiritual well-being, spiritual care competency and confidence significantly improved following the training and were largely maintained at follow-up. Perspectives on spirituality and spiritual care did not significantly change over time., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

While patients value engagement concerning their spirituality as a part of holistic healthcare, there is little evidence regarding the preferred way to engage in discussions about spirituality. This study investigated inpatient preferences regarding how they would like spirituality to be raised in the hospital setting. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with inpatients at six hospitals in Sydney, Australia (n = 897), with a subset invited to participate in qualitative interviews (n = 41). There was high approval for all proposed spiritual history prompts (94.0-99.8%). In interviews, the context dictated the appropriateness of discussions. Findings indicated a high level of patient acceptability for discussing spirituality in healthcare. Further research and more detailed analysis is required and proposed to be undertaken., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Objective: Spiritual care is a component of quality palliative care, but healthcare providers have reported lack of training as a barrier to its provision. This paper describes the evaluation of the Interprofessional Spiritual Care Educational Curriculum (ISPEC) © which is a six-module evidence-based curriculum developed for teaching interprofessional spiritual care based on a generalist-specialist model of spiritual care., Method: The course was run online in 2020 and attended by 20 healthcare workers who were invited to join the evaluation. Questionnaires were completed by participants before the training program (baseline), immediately after the training (post), and 3 months following the end of the program (follow-up). After the follow-up questionnaires, participants were invited to join a Focus Group to expand on their responses. Descriptive and exploratory statistical analysis was performed on quantitative data, and qualitative data was subjected to Thematic Analysis., Results: Exploratory data analysis showed that self-reported competence, confidence, and comfort in providing spiritual care significantly improved following training ( p = 0.002) and were maintained over time ( p = 0.034). In qualitative analysis, the main themes were: (1) overwhelmed by content; (2) the importance of practical training; (3) spiritual care is for everyone; (4) spiritual care should come from the heart; (5) training needs to be inclusive; and (6) spirituality is culturally specific., Significance of Results: This article describes an evaluation of the ISPEC © spiritual care training course administered to an Australian healthcare cohort using an online format. These preliminary findings suggest that the ISPEC © program is effective in improving the ability of healthcare professionals to provide spiritual care. More work is needed to improve the cultural relevance of the program in Australia.

Objective: The aim was to to establish core components of spiritual care training for healthcare professionals in Australia., Methods: This study used the Delphi technique to undertake a consensus exercise with spiritual care experts in the field of healthcare. Participant opinion was sought on (i) the most important components of spiritual care training; (ii) preferred teaching methods; (iii) clinical scenarios to address in spiritual care training; and (iv) current spiritual assessment and referral procedures., Results: Of the 107 participants who responded in the first round, 67 (62.6%) were female, 55 (51.4%) worked in pastoral care, and 84 (78.5%) selected Christian as their religious affiliation. The most highly ranked components of spiritual care training were "relationship between health and spirituality," followed by "definitions of spirituality and spiritual care." Consensus was not achieved on the item "comparative religions study/alternative spiritual beliefs." Preferred teaching methods include case studies, group discussion, role-plays and/or simulated learning, videos of personal stories, and self-directed learning. The most highly ranked clinical scenario to be addressed in spiritual care training was "screening for spiritual concerns for any patient or resident." When asked who should conduct an initial spiritual review with patients, consensus was achieved regarding all members of the healthcare team, with most nominating a chaplain or "whoever the patient feels comfortable with." It was considered important for spiritual care training to address one's own spirituality and self-care. Consensus was not achieved on which spiritual care assessment tools to incorporate in training., Significance of Results: This Delphi study revealed that spiritual care training for Australian healthcare professionals should emphasize the understanding of the role of spirituality and spiritual care in healthcare, include a range of delivery methods, and focus upon the incorporation of spiritual screening. Further work is required to identify how spiritual care screening should be conducted within an Australian healthcare setting.

The value of spiritual care training for all staff working in health and aged care has been demonstrated. This study investigated how spiritual care specialists (SCSs) perceive their role in delivering spiritual care education to other staff. Fourteen SCSs participated in three online focus groups. Two key themes were identified: First, SCSs build upon existing capacity of staff by: (i) recognising existing strengths and capabilities; (ii) using relevant stories; (iii) using language which makes spiritual care accessible; (iv) making training relevant and practical; (v) tapping into staff vocation or calling; and (vi) building awareness of one's own spirituality. Second, SCSs assist staff to draw upon SCS expertise by establishing a trusting relationship and developing staff awareness of the SCS role. The SCS's role in delivering spiritual care education is an important one, and further consideration regarding how to support them in this role is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) has brought about physical, psychological and spiritual challenges within health and aged care services across Australia. The aim of this study was to consider the impact of COVID-19 from the perspective of Australian chaplains. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 chaplains. A grounded theory analysis identified three overarching themes: (1) a changing healthcare environment; (2) the impact of the virus; and (3) chaplains responding to the crisis. Increased healthcare restrictions in response to COVID-19 raised levels of fear and anxiety among patients, residents, family members and staff, and generated feelings of isolation and disconnection. Chaplains responded by providing a calm presence, being available, holding out hope, introducing creative ways to provide spiritual care and seeking spiritual nourishment themselves. The value of chaplaincy in health and aged care services is discussed in light of these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]