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Journal of Religion and Health
Published in: Journal of Religion and Health 2/2017

01-04-2017 | Original Paper

Prevalence and Nature of Spiritual Distress Among Palliative Care Patients in India

Authors: Joris Gielen, Sushma Bhatnagar, Santosh K. Chaturvedi

Published in: Journal of Religion and Health | Issue 2/2017

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Abstract

In palliative care research, little attention has been paid to the empirical study of spirituality in patients in non-Western countries. This study describes the prevalence and nature of spiritual distress among Indian palliative care patients. Data from 300 adult cancer patients who had completed a questionnaire with 36 spirituality items were analyzed. Spirituality was shaped by the Indian religious and economic context. A latent class analysis resulted in three clusters: trustful patients (46.4 %), spiritually distressed patients (17.4 %), and patients clinging to divine support (36.2 %). After regression, the clusters were found to be associated with pain scores (p < .001), gender (p = .034), and educational level (p < .006). More than half of the patients would benefit from spiritual counselling. More research and education on spirituality in Indian palliative care is urgently required.
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Metadata
Title
Prevalence and Nature of Spiritual Distress Among Palliative Care Patients in India
Authors
Joris Gielen
Sushma Bhatnagar
Santosh K. Chaturvedi
Publication date
01-04-2017
Publisher
Springer US
Published in
Journal of Religion and Health / Issue 2/2017
Print ISSN: 0022-4197
Electronic ISSN: 1573-6571
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-016-0252-5

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