Evaluation of the spiritual health of cancer patients and their nurses in Iran

Background and Purpose: Cancer is associated with significant changes in the lifestyle of patients. Spiritual well-being has been shown to be an inherent element of health, quality of life, increased survival rate, and enhanced adaptability of cancer patients with the disease. This study aimed to evaluate the spiritual health of cancer patients and their nurses. Methods: This descriptive, correlational, cross-sectional study was conducted on 60 hospitalized cancer patients and 60 nurses in the hospitals affiliated to Urmia University of Medical Sciences, Iran during March-October 2014. Participants were selected via accident sampling, and data were collected using the Spiritual Well-being Scale (SWBS). Data analysis was performed in SPSS version 16 using descriptive statistics, Chi-square and T-test. Results: In cancer patients, mean scores of religious, existential and spiritual well-being were 52±2.32, 46±1.23 and 99±3.73, respectively. In the studied nurses, these scores were 29±4.43, 40±1.17 and 70±4.02, respectively. A significant difference was observed between the scores of spiritual well-being between cancer patients and nurses (P=0.001). Conclusion: According to the results of this study, spiritual well-being largely contributes to the mental health of cancer patients. Therefore, higher spiritual well-being of nurses could enhance the spiritual health of cancer patients as well.