Delivering Compassion: Spiritual Care of the Person

Understand the role of spiritual care in the effective and ethical delivery of palliative care. Explore how the hope for a cure is replaced by improving quality of life and working towards a ‘good’ death. Differentiate between religion and spirituality, and critically examine the many dimensions of compassion and spirituality at the end of life.

Concern for compassion in healthcare has increased dramatically of late, and this requires a good understanding of spirituality. Compassionate and spiritual care support the all-round wellbeing and resilience of patients, their families and the staff who are alongside them.

Understanding the role of spiritual care underpins the effective and ethical delivery of healthcare in any setting, but especially so in palliative care. Here, the hope of a cure is replaced by a desire for the best possible quality of life remaining and working towards a ‘good’ death.

This course differentiates between religion and spirituality, and critically examines the many dimensions of spirituality at the end of life. You’ll consider the vital role of relationship in developing meaningful spiritual support for patients and families. Understanding the importance of attending to the spoken and unspoken narratives of people facing death will help to illuminate how hope, meaning and purpose can be re-evaluated in the face of suffering.

Course content

• Dimensions of spirituality
• Personal spirituality
• Caring for the spirit
• Healing in the face of death
• Engaging with/assessing spiritual wellbeing
• Grace and hope in dying.