Preferences for spiritually related nursing interventions among terminally ill and nonterminally ill hospitalized adults and well adults.

The purpose of this study was to determine terminally ill and nonterminally ill hospitalized patients' preferences for spiritually related nursing interventions and to identify differences between the two groups. Additionally, preferences of well adults were examined in comparison to the hospitalized groups. Clinical knowledge in nursing as well as empirical work provided background for the study. Three hundred adults participated in the study by responding to structured and open-ended questions about specific nursing interventions that they thought would help meet their spiritual needs. Significant differences were found across the groups, including a higher preference for more direct, spiritually related nursing interventions and more negativity about the nurse's role in caregiving as expressed by the nonterminally ill group.