Effect of spiritual counseling on spiritual well-being in Iranian women with cancer: A randomized clinical trial

Objectives: This study examined the effect of spiritual counseling on the spiritual well-being of Iranian women with cancer.

Design and setting: a randomized clinical trial was conducted on 42 female cancer patients who were randomized to either an 8-week spiritual counseling intervention (n = 21) or a control group that received routine education/care (n = 21). Spiritual well-being (SWB) was assessed before and after the 8-week spiritual counseling program using Paloutzian and Ellison's (1983) Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS).

Results: There were no significant differences on SWBS and its two subscales scores (RWB and EWB) between intervention and control groups at baseline (p > .05). After intervention, there was a significant mean difference in SWB (p = .001), RWB (p = .013) and EWB (p = .001) in two groups.

Conclusions: Spiritual counseling is associated with significant improvements in SWB in Iranian women with cancer. Interventions that acknowledge the spiritual needs of these patients should be incorporated into conventional treatments.