An exploration of spirituality and spiritual care with rehabilitation inpatients.

The aim of this study was to explore spirituality in inpatient rehabilitation care from the patient's perspective. Participants were recruited from three inpatient rehabilitation services in Sydney, Australia. A qualitative research design was adopted. Demographic data collected included religious affiliation, age and gender. Participants completed a short survey, where they indicated the level of acceptability for 14 items which could be used in a spiritual history. This was followed by a semi-structured interview where participants discussed how they would like to be asked about spirituality, and by whom. Eighteen participants were recruited (10 females, 8 males; mean age 68.8 years) and were undertaking either general rehabilitation ( Rehabilitation inpatients are willing to explore issues around spirituality. Staff can support inpatients to access sources of spiritual strength by creating a safe and trusting environment and finding out what is most meaningful to the patient. Rehabilitation inpatients can experience losses which lead to a reconsideration of life’s meaning and a greater drawing upon sources of spiritual strength.Spirituality may often be understood to refer to religion only yet can encompass a broader range of connection and experience that relate to the source of a person’s ultimate meaning and purpose.By creating a safe and trusting environment for rehabilitation inpatients, staff can find out what is most meaningful for a person.