Chapter 35: Spiritual Health

Question 1

Agnostic

Answer 1

The belief that there is no known ultimate reality.

Question 2

Atheist

Answer 2

Individuals that do not believe in the existence of a God.

Question 3

Faith

Answer 3

A cultural or institutional religion. It is also a relationship with divinity, higher power, authority, or spirit that incorporates a reasoning.

Question 4

Holistic

Answer 4

Enables an individual to establish a helping role and a healing relationship.

Question 5

Hope

Answer 5

The attitude of something to live for and look forward to.

Question 6

Self-transcendence

Answer 6

A sense of authentically connecting to one’s inner self.

Question 7

Spiritual distress

Answer 7

Impaired ability to experience and integrate meaning and purpose in life through contentedness with self, others, art, music, literature, nature, and/or a power greater than oneself. Causes a person to feel doubt, loss of faith, and a sense of being alone or abandoned.

Question 8

Spirituality

Answer 8

Defined as an awareness of one’s inner self and a sense of connection to a higher being, nature, or some purpose greater than oneself; depends on a person’s culture, development, life experiences, and beliefs.

Question 9

Spiritual well-being

Answer 9

Described as having two dimensions. The vertical dimension supports the transcendent relationship between a person and God or some other higher power. The horizontal dimension describes positive relationships and connections that people have with others.

Question 10

Transcendence

Answer 10

The belief that a force outside of and greater than the person exists beyond the material world.

Question 11

Florence Nightingale

Answer 11

Believed that spirituality was a force that provided energy needed to promote a health hospital environment and that caring for a person’s spiritual needs was just as essential as caring for his or her physical needs.

Question 12

Intrapersonally

Answer 12

Connected within oneself.

Question 13

Interpersonally

Answer 13

Connected with others and the environment.

Question 14

Transpersonally

Answer 14

Connected with the unseen, God, or a higher power.

Question 15

Religion

Answer 15

Refers to the system of organized beliefs and worship that a person practices to outwardly express spirituality.

Question 16

What are the differences between religion and spirituality?

Answer 16

Religion care helps patients maintain their faithfulness to their belief systems and worship practices. Spiritual care helps people identify meaning and purpose in life, look beyond the present, and maintain personal relationships and a relationship with a higher being or life force.

Question 17

How do individuals gain spiritual health?

Answer 17

By finding a balance between their values, goals, beliefs, and their relationships within themselves and others.

Question 18

Acute illness

Answer 18

Sudden, unexpected illness frequently creates significant spiritual distress. The illness o injury creates an unanticipated scramble to integrate and cope with new realities.

Question 19

Chronic illness

Answer 19

Many chronic illnesses threaten the person’s independence, causing fear, anxiety, and spiritual distress.

Question 20

Terminal illness

Answer 20

Commonly causes fears of physical pain, isolation, the unknown, and dying. It creates an uncertainty about what death means, making patients susceptible to spiritual distress.

Question 21

Near-death experience

Answer 21

A psychological phenomenon of people who either have been close to clinical death or have recovered after being declared dead.

Question 22

Assessment

Answer 22

Assess the patient’s faith and beliefs, review the patient’s view of life, self-responsibility, and life satisfaction, assess the extent of the patient’s fellowship and community, and review if the patient practices religion and rituals.

Question 23

B-E-L-I-E-F

Answer 23

Belief system, ethics or values, lifestyle, involvement in a spiritual community, education, future events.

Question 24

Planning

Answer 24

Collaborate with the patient and family on choice of interventions, consult with pastoral care or other clergy or spiritual leaders as appropriate, and incorporate spiritual rituals and observances.

Question 25

Support systems

Answer 25

Use of support systems is important in any health care setting. They provide patients with the greatest sense of well-being during hospitalization and serve as a human link connecting the patient, the nurse, and the patient’s lifestyle before an illness.

Question 26

Diet therapies

Answer 26

Food and nutrition are important aspects of patient care and often an important component of some religious observances.

Question 27

Prayer

Answer 27

Offers an opportunity to renew personal faith and belief in a higher being in a specific, focused way that is either highly ritualized and formal or quite spontaneous and informant.

Question 28

Evaluation

Answer 28

Review the patient’s self-perceptions regarding spiritual health, review the patient’s view of his or her purpose in life, discuss with family and close associates the patient’s contentedness, and ask if the patient’s expectations are being met.