Payesh (Oct 2006)
Prayer and spiritual well-being in cancer patients
Abstract
Objective(s): To examine the correlation between prayer and spiritual well-being in patients with cancer undergoing chemotherapy attending cancer centers of Iran and Tehran Medical Sciences Universities during January to May 2006. Methods: This was a descriptive study. The Paloutzian & Ellisonchr('39')s spiritual well-being questionnaire (1989) and the prayer activity questionnaire (Paloma & Pendleton, 1991 and Meraviglia, 2002) were used for data collection. 360 patients with cancer undergoing chemotherapy were entered into the study. Results: The findings showed that the level of patientschr('39') spiritual wellbeing was high. The mean score of spiritual wellbeing was 98.35±14.36. The previous prayer experiences and attitudes toward prayer in 57.2% and 52.2% of patients were desirable respectively. Statistical analysis showed that prayer and spiritual wellbeing were strongly correlated. Conclusion: A strong and direct correlation exists between prayer and spiritual-wellbeing of patients with cancer. Healthcare providers can encourage patients diagnosed with life-threatening diseases to explore their spirituality as an effective resource for dealing with the physical and psychological responses to cancer.
