Spiritual health and experience of suffering in patients with HIV/AIDS in Shiraz, Iran

Introduction: Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is one of the biggest health challenges in the world, affecting both men and women not only physical but also psychological health. The aim of this study was to determine whether spiritual health was effective in reducing the experience of suffering in men and women with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/AIDS.Material and methods: In this cross-sectional study, 112 female and 112 male HIV-positive patients were selected at the Shiraz Behavioral Disease Counseling Center, using convenience sampling me thod. To compare spiritual health between women and men, demographic specifications questionnaires, i.e., Schulz scale of experience and perception of suffering and Paleotezian and Alison spiritual health, were used. Data were analyzed using SPSS software, with p-value < 0.05 considered statistically significant.Results: There was a significant relationship between existential suffer (p < 0.016), existential domain (p < 0.0001), and total spiritual (p < 0.005) with educational level. Also, there was a statistically significant relationship between dimensions of physical suffer I and II with sex (p < 0.045) and age (p < 0.019). In addition, dimensions of suffering and those of spiritual health in terms of gender had a significant relationship with p < 0.005, except for religious domain and physical suffer (dimension I and II).Conclusions: Findings of the present study strengthen the importance of religious and spiritual health in the reduction of experience of suffering in patients with HIV/AIDS. Therefore, the use of spirituality as a strategy to deal with suffering caused by illness should be followed by healthcare providers.