Spirituality is an essential element of health care. It has the ability to increase your fitness and happiness. It will help you cope with illness and speed up your recovery. Spirituality can play an important role not just in your personal healing but also in your overall healthcare experience.
In this article, we will describe spirituality, discuss its impact on your health. Also, we will discuss the role of spirituality on health care.
WHAT IS SPIRITUALITY?
To different people, spirituality means different things. Some may relate it with organized religion or a specific church, a synagogue, temple, mosque, etc. Others describe spirituality as a completely non-religious activity. Others describe it as a combination of religious and non-religious activities. Spirituality may be a quiet time of reflection, meditation, yoga, rituals, or private prayer. Others may find it as simple as going for a walk, hugging trees to connect with nature.
Spirituality gives people a greater meaning in their lives. Believing in something bigger than yourself will provide more peace, connection, excitement, understanding, and adventure than anything else.
Regardless of how you practice spirituality and whether it is linked to religion, the type of faith you have may significantly affect your health. It can provide you with more hope, meaning, direction, vision, and trust.
Why Does it Matter?
In general, one of the primary goals of holistic care is to get to know and care about a patient in all of their complexities and wholeness.
Compassionate spiritual care means serving a patient’s mental, social, and spiritual needs as well as his or her physical needs.
The Importance of Spirituality on Health Care
Technological developments in the last century have helped us to live longer lives. And, without a doubt, we can now live more comfortably and efficiently. These innovations had a significant impact on our values and ethics. Also, they led us to overlook the role of spirituality in healthcare.
Until modern times, spirituality was often associated with health care. And it was regarded as an important component of health and well-being. Spirituality’s role is to assist us in finding hope, comfort, meaning, and inner peace in our lives. Many people discover spirituality through healing practices such as meditation, prayers, etc.
Conducting quantifiable research on the impact of spiritual practices and the role of spirituality in health is difficult. But, recent research has found a connection between prayer and related activities and improved health outcomes.
ROLE OF SPIRITUALITY ON HEALTH CARE
Spirituality and healthcare have been strongly linked across history and throughout cultures. Everything has changed in modern times. Technological advancements and modern-day medical research discoveries have certainly resulted in phenomenal progress in medicines. This gave us the ability to save lives. These modern approaches, on the other hand, have moved the focus of medicine away from a caring, patient-oriented, service-oriented model. The modern approaches focus on a cure-oriented, disease-oriented, and technological model.
Understanding the historical value of spirituality in healthcare and recognizing the benefits for patients, some doctors have been trying to balance their medical practice with spirituality in recent times. Many hospitals provide pastoral care and spiritual services to their patients and families. More doctors are providing compassionate treatment with the goal of serving the whole person. This includes physical, mental, social, and spiritual well-being.
Spirituality has been shown in studies to improve people’s health. And it has an effect on mortality, coping, and recovery.
1. MORTALITY
According to studies, those who engage in a daily spiritual practice live longer lives. Many of those who participate in spiritual practices, such as church attendance, seem to have a 50% lower risk of elevated interleukin (IL-6) levels associated with an increased risk of disease. Spirituality can help with stress management. This leads to better coping skills, increased personal strength, and more social support.
2. COPING
Spirituality will help people in:
- Maintaining a healthy mindset
- Believing in the treatment plan
- Believing in healing
- Creating a better quality of life
According to research, they are also more likely to have a sense of fulfillment, value, and purpose in life. They are more able to make sense of their illness. Spiritual comfort and connection can help them in dealing with their disease and connection. Pain medication plays an important role. But, studies have shown that relaxation, prayer, meditation, can also help with pain relief. Lastly, spirituality can help family members and friends cope with the illness or death of a loved one.
3. RECOVERY
We can see how strong confidence can be by looking at placebo studies. Patients who were given a placebo saw benefits in 35% of cases simply because they thought they took real drugs. They are able to view their “remembered wellness” and feel better as a result.
Spirituality is a much stronger belief in something greater than ourselves and faith in life itself. Just 10–20 minutes of meditation can reduce a patient’s metabolism, heart rate, and brain waves. Spiritual activities can reduce anxiety, boost self-esteem, and enhance physical performance. 60–90% of patients visit their primary care physician for stress-related problems. So, spirituality can be helpful in reducing stress and improving health. Finally, compassionate and spiritual care can significantly improve the patient-physician relationship. This can increase faith and recovery.
4. COMPASSIONATE CARE
Healthcare is more than just identifying illnesses and treating them with medicine and surgery. People long for support. Caring for patients means spending time with them, asking questions, and holding their hands.
Man is not destroyed by suffering. He is destroyed by meaningless suffering. Spirituality may help with finding this meaning in order to get through an illness, deal with pain, and find healing. Compassionate treatment by a physician can help patients and their families in this situation. A physician who is there, cares, and listens can be a true source of support. Sometimes it comes to caring for chronically ill and dying patients. Then the role of spirituality becomes more widely recognized. But the same support should be given to those with less severe problems and chronic illness.
Understanding a patient’s spirituality will help a doctor treat them more effectively. Spirituality can influence a patient’s understanding of their illness and decision to seek treatment. Religious views can also play a role in their treatment decision-making. Spiritual practices can play a significant role in the coping of patients and their families. Spirituality can also play an important role in a patient’s overall treatment.
To provide compassionate care, physicians can:
- Provide a protected zone
- Pay attention to the suffering, worries, wishes, and desires of patients
- Learn from their spiritual background
- Make suggestions for spiritual rituals (e.g., meditation, yoga)
Physicians don’t need to replace the position of chaplains, and other spiritual leaders. Physicians should provide medical care to their patients while also being compassionate and promoting their patients’ spiritual healing.
As a patient, you are encouraged to explore your spiritual beliefs and practices with your doctor. Take control of your health and participate in spiritual activities to improve your health and well-being as a Health Hero. Meditation is one of the most beneficial practices you can learn to help you with your health and recovery.
The Bottom Line
Spirituality in health care can help with coping and recovery. It can help us create a positive outlook on life, discover our purpose, reduce pain. Also, it can improve physical functioning, lower your risk of disease, increase relaxation. Also, it can lower stress, increase hope, increase a sense of belonging, and increase your lifespan. There is no doubt that spirituality is an essential aspect of your healthcare journey.
