Attitudes of stakeholders and policymakers in the healthcare system towards the provision of spiritual care in Israel

Introduction and aim: Spiritual-care services and chaplaincy in the medical system are provided to people with serious illnesses, aiming to help them achieve moments of peace and acceptance while contending with illness or facing death. Chaplaincy has been available in Europe and in the U.S. for many decades, but such programs started to develop in Israel only few years ago. This paper examines the attitudes of stakeholders, directors and policymakers in the healthcare system towards the provision of spiritual care and the development of such programs. Method: We conducted in-depth face-to-face interviews with 16 individuals in the healthcare system. All the interviews were transcribed in full and analyzed using qualitative study methods. Findings: Most of the interviewees had little knowledge of spiritual care and many mentioned barriers and challenges to its implementation in the healthcare system. These issues include: lack of knowledge and understanding about spiritual care precluding impeded their ability to evaluate its suitability for the healthcare services; confusion between spiritual care and religion; concerns about potential conflict with other professionals, especially social workers; barriers to funding of the new services; barriers to the successful integration of new ideas; and concerns about formal training and accreditation of the new profession. Implications for policy: Spiritual care has begun to take root in Israel's health system, but it is still at an early stage of development. Implementation must continue apace and careful consideration must be given to optimizing its acceptance by the establishment. (C) 2010 Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.