Spirituality and Interprofessional Health Care Education: An exploratory study

Abstract: There is limited knowledge of health professions students’ experiences or perceptions of spirituality in professional practice. While acknowledged by researchers and practitioners as important and integral to patient care, undergraduate and graduate programs nationwide are inconsistent in curricular offerings and incorporation of spiritual training. This study includes a sample (n=131) of students at one large, public, Midwestern university who participated in one of two seminar programs focused on incorporation of spiritual care in health care practice, and used the Spirituality and Spiritual Care Rating Scale (SSCRS) and additional survey questioning to assess the participating students’ views. It was found that an overwhelming majority of nursing and other health professions students were comfortable with incorporating spirituality into their practice, believed spirituality had broad applications for many patients, and would like additional curriculum training in these areas.