Religion and Spirituality in Oncology: An Exploratory Study of the Communication Experiences of Clinicians in Poland

Communication with patients regarding oncology-related aspects is a challenging experience and requires a high level of skill from the interlocutors. The aim of this study was to verify the influence of religion/spirituality in oncological settings from the health professionals’ perspectives in Pola...

Full description

Saved in:  
Bibliographic Details
Authors: Kowalczyk, Oliwia (Author) ; Roszkowski, Krzysztof (Author) ; Pawliszak, Wojciech (Author) ; Rypel, Agnieszka (Author) ; Roszkowski, Szymon (Author) ; Kowalska, Jolanta (Author) ; Tylkowski, Bartosz (Author) ; Bajek, Anna (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
Drawer...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Published: Springer Science + Business Media B. V. 2022
In: Journal of religion and health
Year: 2022, Volume: 61, Issue: 2, Pages: 1366-1375
Further subjects:B Oncologists
B Spirituality
B Religion
B Cancer Care
B Empathy
B Communication in healthcare
B Radiotherapists
Online Access: Volltext (kostenfrei)
Description
Summary:Communication with patients regarding oncology-related aspects is a challenging experience and requires a high level of skill from the interlocutors. The aim of this study was to verify the influence of religion/spirituality in oncological settings from the health professionals’ perspectives in Poland. It assessed the role of religion/spirituality in patient-clinician communication, death or stress self-management, empathy, and breaking bad news skills. Data collection was carried out through a standardized self-administered questionnaire with varying scales. The study cohort consisted of 60 medical practitioners specializing in oncological radiotherapy treatments. It was observed that strategies used for coping with patients’ death, stress reduction, empathy, communication with patients and/or their relatives, or breaking bad news skills, may be gender-specific or may depend on the length of time employed, as well as experience in a cancer-related work environment. This study shows that spirituality and religiousness can support clinicians in managing challenging or negative emotions related to their work in cancer settings. Religiousness and spirituality can also serve as a potential therapeutic strategies for those exposed to patient suffering and death.
ISSN:1573-6571
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of religion and health
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1007/s10943-021-01343-1