Hong Kong enrolled nurses' perceptions of spirituality and spiritual care

Aim: To explore Hong Kong nurses' perceptions of spirituality and spiritual care, and to investigate the relationship between their perceptions and their demographic characteristics. Background: Many studies suggest that spirituality is the essence of human being and plays an important role in people's lives. Although studies have documented the positive relationship between spiritual care and patients' health outcomes, it has also been shown that the implementation of spiritual care is uncommon in nursing practice. Furthermore, there is little discussion on practising nurses' perception of spirituality and spiritual care in Hong Kong. Methods: This study adopted a cross-sectional descriptive design to investigate nurses' perception of spirituality and spiritual care in Hong Kong. A convenience sample of 429 practising enrolled nurses were invited to complete the Spirituality and Spiritual Care Rating Scale (SSCRS) (response rate 91%). Findings: Subjects showed satisfactory understanding of spirituality and appreciated providing spiritual care to patients. The mean scores for the SSCRS and its four subscales were greater than half of the maximum score. There were significant differences in the perceptions of spirituality between subjects with different education levels and religious affiliations. Conclusions: The findings suggest increasing the emphasis of spirituality both in undergraduate education and in continuing-development levels. Recommendations are also made regarding the implementation of spiritual care in nursing practice. Despite having a convenience sample, the present study has contributed to stimulating awareness and discussion among nurses on spirituality and spiritual care.