Australian Patient Preferences for Discussing Spiritual Issues in the Hospital Setting: An Exploratory Mixed Methods Study

Megan C Best; Kate Jones; Frankie Merritt; Michael Casey; Sandra Lynch; John A Eisman; Jeffrey Cohen; Darryl Mackie; Kirsty Beilharz; Matthew Kearney

doi:10.1007/s10943-023-01767-x

Australian Patient Preferences for Discussing Spiritual Issues in the Hospital Setting: An Exploratory Mixed Methods Study

J Relig Health. 2024 Feb;63(1):238-256. doi: 10.1007/s10943-023-01767-x. Epub 2023 Feb 20.

Authors

Megan C Best¹, Kate Jones², Frankie Merritt³, Michael Casey³, Sandra Lynch², John A Eisman^{3

4

5

6

7}, Jeffrey Cohen^{3

5}, Darryl Mackie⁵, Kirsty Beilharz⁸, Matthew Kearney⁶

Affiliations

¹ Institute for Ethics and Society, University of Notre Dame Australia, Broadway, PO Box 944, Sydney, NSW, 2007, Australia. megan.best@nd.edu.au.
² Institute for Ethics and Society, University of Notre Dame Australia, Broadway, PO Box 944, Sydney, NSW, 2007, Australia.
³ The School of Medicine Sydney, University of Notre Dame Australia, Sydney, Australia.
⁴ Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, Australia.
⁵ St Vincent's Private Hospital, Sydney, Australia.
⁶ St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, Australia.
⁷ Faculty of Medicine, University of NSW, Kensington, NSW, Australia.
⁸ Excelsia College, Sydney, Australia.

Abstract

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.

Keywords: (3–5) spirituality; Healthcare professionals; Patient preferences; Patient–clinician interaction; Spiritual history.

MeSH terms

Australia
Cross-Sectional Studies
Hospitals
Humans
Inpatients
Patient Preference*
Spirituality*

Abstract

MeSH terms

Grants and funding