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COVID-19 pandemic has triggered serious psychological problems mainly in the front-line healthcare staff. The aim of this study was to examine the predictive role of spiritual health and resilience in mental distress of nurses in COVID-19 wards in Iran. A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out on 91 nurses working in COVID-19 wards in 2020. The results showed that 23.1% of nurses had mental distress. In addition, the correlation coefficient showed that there was a negative and significant relationship between spiritual health (r = -.22, p < .01) and resilience (r = -.34, p < .01) with mental distress. The regression results indicated that spiritual health and resilience predicted 16% of the variation in mental distress (p < .05). Spiritual health and resilience are important constructs of mental distress in nurses and significantly predict and elaborate parts of changes in mental distress. Thus, mental health in nurses can be improved by improving the spiritual aspect and resilience in nurses. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)
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Background/Purpose: Patients with Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM) have complex care needs and poor prognoses, which places their caregivers at risk for existential distress and psychopathology. Many caregivers seek support in coping with this role;the COVID-19 pandemic further exacerbated caregiver distress and the demand for caregiver support services. The purpose of this study was to examine how psychosocial service use and barriers to use relate to existential distress, anxiety, and depression. Method(s): This study was part of a RCT examining Meaning-Centered Psychotherapy among 60 distressed caregivers of patients with GBM. At baseline, caregivers reported use of psychosocial services and barriers to seeking those services. Additionally, participants completed measures of meaning, existential distress, spiritual wellbeing, anxiety, depression, and caregiver burden. We descriptively analyzed use of healthcare services, prevalence and intensity of barriers to seeking support, and investigated their correlations with outcome measures. Result(s): The most common service endorsed was psychotropic medication use, with 29.3% of caregivers reporting using medications to cope, and it was the only service associated with significantly lower personal meaning and spiritual well-being, and higher anxiety. Of the barriers reported, difficulty finding support (46.4% endorsed), lack of time for support (35.1% endorsed), and caregiving responsibilities (33.9% endorsed) were the most common. Caregivers who endorsed difficulty finding support as a barrier had significantly higher levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms, lack of family support, and impact on schedule. Further, caregivers who reported higher perceived intensity of barriers had elevated levels of existential vacuum, anxiety, and depression. Conclusions and Implications: GBM caregivers often rely on psychotropic medication as a stopgap to manage distress, which may worsen existential distress and anxiety, likely because resources like talk therapy and support groups are inaccessible. These results underscore the need for expanded caregiver support services, and how barriers to these services may exacerbate existential distress and discourage caregivers.
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Objectives Fear is one of the most frequent feelings associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Older people are at risk for severe COVID-19 infection. Spiritual well-being can play an important role in patients' coping and adaptation to stressful conditions. The present study aims to determine the role of spiritual well-being in predicting fear of COVID-19 among older adults in Qazvin, Iran. Methods & Materials This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 400 community-dwelling older adults in Qazvin, Iran in 2021 who were selected using a cluster sampling method from public places in three urban areas. Data were collected using a demographic checklist, the Fear of COVID-19 Scale, and Paloutzian and Ellison's Spiritual well-being scale. A multivariate regression model was used to determine the predictors of fear of COVID-19. Results The mean age of participants was 69.70±6.99 years. Their fear of COVID-19 was at a high level (Mean±SD=22±8.82). The results of regression analysis showed that sex (β=0.186, P=0.001), history of hypertension (β=0.130, P=0.006), history of diabetes (β=0.097, P=0.037), history of stroke (β=0.091, P=0.048), educational level (β=-0.142, P=0.007), economic status (β=0.145, P=0.007), and spiritual wellbeing (β=-0.117, P=0.013) were the predictors of fear of COVID-19. Conclusion Spiritual well-being, as well as educational level, history of chronic diseases, and economic status have a role in predicting the fear of COVID-19 in older adults. Therefore, the implementation of spirituality-related care programs can be useful for reducing the fear and anxiety of older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic © 2022, Iranian Journal of Ageing.All Rights Reserved.
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Given disruptions to families' routines and processes wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic, this article explores associations between changes in the frequency of spiritual practices and relational well-being during COVID-19. Using a survey of 1,510 adults in the United States administered during the summer of 2020, we employed a mixed methods approach. Significant associations were found between the frequency of engaging in spiritual practices and relational well-being. Specifically, engaging in spiritual practices was associated with increased emotional closeness and a greater likelihood of reporting a positive lasting effect of the pandemic on family relationships. Our findings suggest that some families and individuals may find that engaging in individual or group spiritual practices, including yoga and meditation, mindfulness, and enjoying nature, fostered resilience and growth during the pandemic.
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Introduction: Patients with advanced COPD experience a low quality of life (QoL). In oncological patients, palliative care improves QoL and reduces healthcare use. Whether this also applies to patients with COPD is not yet known. Therefore, in a cluster randomized controlled trial, we assessed the effectiveness of integrated palliative care on QoL and acute healthcare use of patients with COPD. Method(s): Eight hospital regions were randomized. Healthcare providers of intervention regions were trained in identification of palliative patients, multidimensional assessment, advance care planning and care coordination. Patients were identified using the ProPal-COPD tool. Questionnaires were completed by patients at baseline, after 3 and 6 months, and medical record assessment after 12 months. Primary outcome was QoL (FACIT-Pal). Secondary Outcomes: spiritual wellbeing, health-related QoL, anxiety/depression, acute healthcare use and place of death. Generalized linear modeling was used to adjust for baseline values and account for clustering by region. Result(s): Of 222 patients enrolled, 100 completed the questionnaire at 6 months. Intention to treat analysis showed no statistically significant effect on primary and secondary wellbeing outcomes. In the intervention group, the number of ICU admissions was lower (OR=0.212;p=0.047) and there was a trend for fewer hospitalizations (IRR=0.690;p=0.068). Discussion(s): We found no evidence that palliative care improves QoL in patients with COPD, but it can potentially reduce acute healthcare use. A low recruitment rate due to COVID-19, high loss to follow up and implementation failure have to be taken into account.
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A new, universally attractive and applicable paradigm that welcomes and encourages people to take responsibility for themselves and explore their true selves in search of health, especially in sickness and adversity is spirituality and psychological beliefs. In COVID-19 pandemic situation, how people react and will be in a healthy condition is a crucial aspect in India and even in other countries. To investigate the solution, we had aimed to study the impact of two factors like spiritual well-being and psychological well-being on attack of COVID-19 in India. To study the same a sample of 650 respondents were taken through online survey where 285 questionnaires were only selected for further analysis. A well-designed questionnaire was prepared by testing validating through experts for collecting the responses. Factor analysis and multiple regression tools were used to analyse the data for achieving objective of study. The results notified that spiritual well-being and psychological well-being were having less impact on attack of COVID-19 in people, but the relation exhibits significant. Which implies even there is less impact they are having some relation in prevention of attack of COVID-19. The paper continued with the future research of the study.Copyright © 2020 Ubiquity Press. All rights reserved.
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The whole world has been knocked down by the Pandemic COVID-19 crisis which had impacted people's health globally, including death among people mostly with comorbidity. Some even lost their loved ones. Huge number of people lost jobs due to economic depression that incurred due to restricted movement control orders imposed globally. Whole pandemic events culminated into affecting physical, mental, social, emotional and spiritual well-being. On the flip side, these have been indicated as essential mechanisms to cope up with the current adaptation during this crisis. Role of Existential Intelligence's (Ex I) in influencing Adversity Quotient (AQ) while handling crisis is still immature. The connection between Ex I and AQ is able to provide a bigger picture to stakeholders namely customers, employees, investors, suppliers and vendors, communities, and government in improving the current situation, especially during the post-crisis recovery period. In the present paper, an attempt is made to unravel Ex I adaptation and its contribution towards high AQ in various scenarios. There is no precise test developed pertaining to Ex I as a full-fledged intelligence. However, certain characteristics of Ex I are interconnected to spiritual or religious aspects. Certain degrees of relation are identified between Intelligence Quotient (IQ), Emotional Quotient (EQ), Spiritual Quotient (SQ), and Adversity Quotient (AQ) as foundation for intrapersonal competencies. Therefore, existentialism creates self-realization while handling crisis such as Pandemic COVID-19, appreciating every life moment which is deep rooted in the spiritual and religious teachings. Further in-depth research is needed to better appreciate or understand the contribution of Ex I on AQ for overall well-being of the society in the challenging global environment. Copyright © 2022 Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications. All rights reserved.
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Purpose: This study investigated how spirituality as a defensive factor of psychological well-being reduces anxiety among Indonesian Muslims during the pandemic COVID-19. Patients and Methods: Data were collected from 538 Indonesian Muslims through a survey using the spiritual well-being and depression, anxiety and stress (DAS-21) and examined using structural equation model (SEM) analysis. Results: The empirical results indicate that spirituality is a factor that increases happiness, psychological well-being and mental health among Indonesian Muslims. Conclusion: The study also concluded that spirituality positively and significantly reduces anxiety, depression, and stress. This finding confirms that the spiritual beliefs of Indonesian Muslims can play a significant role in improving mental health during pandemic. This study can control mental illness based on spirituality theory and practice.
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Background: It is becoming increasingly apparent that the COVID-19 pandemic not only poses risks to physical health, but that it also might lead to a global mental health crisis, making the exploration of protective factors for mental well-being highly relevant. The present study seeks to investigate religious/spiritual well-being (RSWB) as a potential protective factor with regard to psychiatric symptom burden and addictive behavior. Materials and Methods: The data was collected by conducting an online survey in the interim period between two national lockdowns with young adults (N = 306; age: 18-35) in Austria. The primary study variables were assessed through the Brief Symptom Inventory 18 (BSI-18; psychiatric symptom load), the Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST; addictive behavior/addiction risk) and the Multidimensional Inventory for Religious/Spiritual Well-Being short version (MI-RSWB 12), with its sub-dimensions Hope (HO), Forgiveness (FO), General Religiosity (GR), and Connectedness (CO). Results: We observed HO and FO as substantial negative predictors of psychiatric symptom burden. With regard to addictive behavior, HO in particular but also GR seem to have a protective function. Furthermore, we found positive connections between CO, psychiatric symptom burden, and addictive behavior. Conclusion: In line with our assumptions, HO, FO and to a minor extent GR were confirmed as negative predictors regarding psychiatric symptom burden or addictive behavior in young adults, coping with the psychological threat of COVID-19 pandemic. These dimensions might be further considered as potential resources in clinical treatment. However, the positive prediction of mental illness parameters by increased feelings of CO could also be interpreted as an expression of exhaustion and alienation from the real world.
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Background: Nutrition and lifestyle interventions are instrumental in modifying cancer risk. These changes are often challenging for patients to make due to residual side effects from active treatment and/or ongoing toxicities from current treatment. The SHINE (Survivorship and Health Interventions in Nutrition and Exercise) Program is a wellness program for patients with breast cancer focusing on three pillars of nutrition, exercise and community in order to improve overall health outcomes and decrease the risk of cancer recurrence. Methods: Participants in SHINE have either been diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) and/or stage I-IV breast cancer. They are referred to the program at the threemonth breast surgery post-operative follow-up appointment or any time after that. All patients are referred to meet with a registered dietitian (RD) and integrative health coach, who provides counseling and education on how to reduce risk through diet and lifestyle, using evidence-based recommendations. Patients are provided with support and accountability. A collaborative program, the Physician Referred Exercise Program (PREP), was established with our health system's medical fitness center, Valley Health LifeStyles. Patients undergo a fitness assessment that focuses on aerobic fitness, muscle strength and endurance, flexibility, & functional activity. Each patient then receives an exercise prescription developed by a degreed exercise specialist, taking into account both the physician's & patient's recommendations & goals. Results: Each component of the SHINE Program has been developed in various stages due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 336 patients with either DCIS or stage I-IV breast cancer have been seen by the RD from December 2020 through January 2022. Mean number of visits/ patient: 1.89 (range 1-8). N = 48 were participants in a 12-week study on the feasibility of nutrition counseling and impact on quality of life (QOL) which is still in progress. 76 patient referrals have been placed to the PREP program from August 2021-February 2022. Multiple community programs (Table) have been created for patients to help them develop shared experiences & camaraderie with each other so that they can better integrate new ideas and lifestyle modifications. Conclusions: The SHINE Program addresses care for the whole person, empowering individuals to live their healthiest lifestyle. Future work will focus on clinical trials to evaluate the benefits of these individual and collective interventions on overall QOL, QOL subscales (physical, psychological, social & spiritual well-being), & survivorship symptoms.
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This study aimed to examine the relationships between the variables of pandemic awareness, death anxiety, and spiritual well-being and reveal whether the participants' perceptions of pandemic awareness, death anxiety, and spiritual well-being differed according to various sociodemographic characteristics. The study population is comprised of individuals aged 65 years and over in Edirne, Turkey. The data obtained from 449 people in the study were analyzed using various statistical methods. According to the results of the regression analysis performed in the study, the increase in the participants' pandemic awareness was found to reduce their death anxiety and increase their spiritual well-being statistically. Moreover, the increase in the participants' death anxiety statistically reduced their spiritual well-being.
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Introduction A substantial proportion of cancer survivors experience a relatively high symptom burden. During the COVID-19 pandemic, study purposes were to identify distinct symptom profiles in cancer survivors and evaluate for differences among these symptom profiles in QOL outcomes. Methods Survivors (n=1145) completed questionnaires that evaluated: depression, state anxiety, morning and evening fatigue, morning and evening energy, sleep disturbance, cognitive impairment, and pain. QOL was assessed using the QOL Scale-Patient Version. Latent profile analysis was used to identify distinct symptom profiles (i.e., latent classes) using the severity scores from each of the symptom measures. Differences in QOL scores were evaluated using analysis of variance. Results Four distinct symptom profiles were identified (i.e., none (28.6%), low (37.7%), high (25.9%), very high (7.9%)). Compared to the none class, survivors in the other three classes were younger, more likely to be female, had a higher comorbidity burden, and a poorer functional status. Differences among the four classes in physical, psychological, social, and spiritual well-being, as well as total QOL scores followed the same pattern (none > low > high > very high). Conclusions Findings suggest that almost 35% of cancer survivors were experiencing a high to very high symptom burden during the COVID-19 pandemic. As symptom burden increased in these survivors, decrements in QOL increased in a stepwise fashion.
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The human being is endowed with a strong conservation factor. Created in the image of the Divinity, in extreme conditions it can activate positive spiritual forces in order to overcome the difficult moments in its existence. Spiritual well-being refers to our willingness to find the meaning and purpose of human existence, a habit of questioning everything and understanding things that cannot be easily explained or understood. The present study aims to investigate the relationship between spiritual well-being (SWB) and religiosity as protective factors during the pandemic years of 2020-2021. In order to do so, we conducted an online survey in order to measure the perceived impact and stress of the covid-19 pandemic on young people's life. 719 Romanian students, with a mean age of 28 years (SD = 10.36), filled in a demographic questionnaire, Paloutzian & Ellison's Spiritual Well-Being Scale and Huber's Centrality of Religiosity Scale. The results showed that the people who attended the church more frequently, who prayed a lot, who could communicate with their priest, who have high levels of spiritual well-being and have the religiosity as a central value, perceive a less impact of the pandemic, and felt lower levels of stress during these years. We consider these results to be important for the combined efforts of psychologist and priests to support people's mental health, and is one of the few studies on spiritual well-being on Orthodox population during this Pandemic context.
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OFPs and other health care professionals experience increased rates of stress, anxiety, fatigue and burnout in the face of pandemics. Historically, this has been observed with other pandemics, such as the influenza pandemic, HIV/AIDS, SARS, H1N1, Ebola virus disease and, more recently, COVID-19. Research about physician wellbeing during prior pandemics has informed recent practices and provides more guidance on how larger health care entities can provide for employees and how physicians can care for themselves. Here, we explore best practices for emotional/spiritual wellbeing, physical wellbeing, maintaining a healthy family life and wellness during a virus outbreak.
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AIM: To evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the emotional and spiritual well-being and resilience of a global sample of Advanced Practice Nurses. DESIGN: A web-based cross-sectional mixed methods study. Survey data were collected from Advanced Practice Nurses globally over a 2-month period ending on 31 August 2020. METHODS: The Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale, FACIT-12 Spiritual Well-being Scale and Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale 10 were used to quantify emotional and spiritual well-being and resilience of Advanced Practice Nurses' globally. The survey was distributed internationally using snowball sampling via a secure platform (Qualtrics). Results were analysed using various bivariate tests for associations and group differences. RESULTS: Nine hundred and twenty-eight Advanced Practice Nurses from 53 countries participated in the study. Study participants reported meaningfully lower scores in resilience and emotional well-being compared with non-pandemic scores. Participants from countries with well-developed Advanced Practice Nurses roles reported lower resilience and well-being scores compared with those from countries where Advanced Practice Nurses roles are still being developed. Each scale revealed significant positive associations with the other scales. CONCLUSIONS: Emotional and spiritual well-being and resilience of Advance Practice Nurses has been significantly impacted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Regardless of their work location, work hours, credential or demographics, the APNs in our study reported lower levels of resilience and mental well-being compared with typical scores on the instruments.
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COVID-19 , Nurses , COVID-19/epidemiology , Cross-Sectional Studies , Humans , Pandemics , SARS-CoV-2 , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
Psychosocial stress, tension, and depression are quite common in many parts of the developed world. Integrative medicine techniques which may potentially increase spiritual and emotional well-being may be useful in combating chronic psychosocial stress, as well as challenges with depression and excessive tension. The present observational study examines the effect of singing-bowl sound healing on emotional and spiritual well-being and particularly examines interrelationships between changes in spiritual well-being with changes in tension and depressed mood post-sound healing. Participants experienced a sound healing environment of vibrational musical instruments such as singing bowls (bell-like instruments), gongs, and other vibrational instruments. Sixty-two participants were examined in an observational study using singing-bowl sound healing. Emotional and spiritual well-being were examined by utilizing standardized questionnaires. Results revealed significant correlations between improvements in scores of spiritual well-being and reductions in scores of tension and depression post-sound healing. Moreover, effects varied by age of the study participants. Specifically, the association between spiritual well-being improvement and depression improvement was strongest for ages 31–40, while spiritual well-being improvement and tension improvement associations were strongest for ages 51–60. Implications for applying sound healing meditations as a potential low-cost, low-technology therapeutic technique are discussed for emotional and spiritual well-being.
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AIMS: This study explores nurses' perceived spiritual well-being in the workplace during the COVID-19 pandemic. BACKGROUND: Nurses have been working heavy shifts under challenging workplace conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to anxiety and psychological stress. These various challenges at work place their spiritual well-being at risk. METHODS: An unstructured individual online interview was conducted to collect data from 18 nurses from April to August 2021. Data were analysed using the thematic approach. RESULTS: This study highlighted the four themes of spiritual well-being of nurses, namely, "Trust in God," "spiritual encouragement," "spiritual attributes in the workplace," and "spiritual growth." CONCLUSIONS: The study concludes that spirituality is critical in helping nurses overcome the myriad of adversities they face as they assume their important roles during the ongoing pandemic. IMPLICATION FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: The study emphasizes that nurses' spiritual aspect during crises is equally important with the other aspects of a nurse's life. Moreover, policies and interventions in hospitals must be implemented to ensure excellent levels of spiritual well-being among nurses.
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COVID-19 , Nurses , COVID-19/epidemiology , Cross-Sectional Studies , Humans , Pandemics , SpiritualityABSTRACT
Parent and practitioners observations were examined to provide insights into the impact of covid-19 restrictions on children’s spiritual well-being, specifically related to reduced physical meeting of church communities in two case study contexts: Poland and the UK. Exploration of the four domains of spiritual wellbeing was carried out (Fisher 1998), with specific focus on how the abrupt changes in the communal domain may have impacted on other aspects of the child’s spiritual well-being. Significant variations in the response by churches during the pandemic were overlaid by disparate perceptions of the spiritual needs of children in these contexts. The extent to which these responses dovetailed with parental responsibilities and expectations of the church was considered alongside awareness of the changed nature of church’s activity with children during the pandemic.
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PURPOSE: The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the professional, social, and spiritual activities of resident physicians around the world, impacting wellness and personal relationships. Moreover, social distancing caused significant limitations or shutdown of places of worship, including churches, synagogues, mosques, etc. Our goal was to survey resident physicians in primary care and surgical subspecialties in the United States (U.S.) and Canada and to examine the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on their well-being. METHODS: An international cross-sectional study was performed in November 2020, using an anonymous survey of programs in the U.S. and Canada, containing 20 questions to assess the impact of the pandemic on resident participation in social and spiritual activities and the effects on their wellness, and personal relationships. The emails with survey links attached were sent to individual program coordinators from accredited residency training programs in the United States and Canada. This consisted of programs accredited by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC), and the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). The survey was evenly divided among surgical programs (General Surgery, Neurological Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery, Urological Surgery, and Integrated Surgical Residency Programs such as Plastic Surgery, Cardiothoracic Surgery, Pediatric Surgery, and Vascular Surgery) as well as primary care programs (Internal Medicine and Family Medicine). RESULTS: A total of 196 residents, 60 primary care residents, and 136 surgery residents participated in the study. Ninety-six participants (49%) were female, and 98 of the participants (50%) were male, with the remainder two residents identifying as "Other." Of the primary care residents, the majority (39, 65%) were female. Conversely, the majority (77, 57%) of surgery residents were male. CONCLUSION: The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the social lives, relationships, and spiritual well-being of both surgical and primary care resident physicians. However, primary care residents reported significantly greater engagement in personal relationships and were more likely to express feelings of mental and physical exhaustion, prohibiting social attendance.