Spirituality and spiritual care in nursing : a critical discourse analysis

Abstract

Spiritual care has long been associated with nursing, with notable leaders such as Florence Nightingale promoting its inclusion in nursing. Spirituality as a concept has a wide range of meanings ranging from ontological to religious perspectives. Spirituality has received increased attention in recent times, with increasing evidence of the benefits of spirituality on wellbeing coupled with the desire of patients to receive care that focuses on the spiritual as well as the physical aspects of their health. In light of this, consideration needs to be given to its place in nursing from a practice standards perspective, and as it is understood and practiced by registered nurses (RNs). This study sought to critically analyse the ways in which spirituality is talked about in nursing, and to understand how RNs bring meaning to the concept of spirituality in the practice of nursing. The design of this qualitative study was informed by Fairclough's approach to critical discourse analysis and Chilton's approach to a lesser extent. This study is comprised of interviews with two groups of participants. The first group of participants consisted of three members of the RN Standards for Practice research and development team. The second group of participants comprises 20 RNs - 14 of whom were working in a faith-based private hospital and six in a non-denominational public hospital in Sydney, Australia. The interview texts of both groups of participants were analysed through the application of Schneider's ten work steps. The work steps were used to analyse the RN Standards for Practice research and development team participants' interview texts to discover their constructions of spirituality. The work steps were also used to analyse the second group of participants' interview texts to find out how RNs construct their understanding of spirituality and spiritual care. Findings: The findings are presented in this thesis as a series of publications. The interview texts of the RN Standards for Practice research and development team participants revealed three discourses of spirituality. Discussion: The findings revealed that the RN Standards for Practice research and development team participants' spirituality constructions were influenced by contemporary understandings of holistic and person-centred care and professionalisation of nursing. However, the RN participants' constructions of spirituality were highly personalised and influenced by their pre-registration education and clinical environment they were practicing in. The findings from this study offer a new and deeper insight into spirituality's construction in the context of nursing.

Date of Award	2021
Original language	English