An exploratory study into the processes nurses employ to recognise the spiritual needs of clients with psychosis

The NHS sets out to provide holistic care; included under this is a consideration of clients' spiritual needs. However, the area of spirituality and mental health is underresearched and there is a concern that spiritual needs are not being met. Traditionally spirituality has been subsumed under the umbrella of religion, but recently there has been an emerging field of literature dedicated to the study of spirituality as a concept in its own right. Although a handful of studies have examined the way in which nurses recognise and meet the spiritual needs of their clients, to date no study has researched the processes at play in a client group with psychosis. Furthermore, no study has analysed the influences that nurses' own beliefs have on this process. This study employs an interview format and qualitative analysis to examine these processes. The main findings are that nurses define spirituality in individual ways, with some equating it with religion and others separating the concepts. These definitions inform the ways in which they recognise and meet spiritual needs in clients with psychosis. Because beliefs are so personal and because one of the nurse's primary therapeutic tools is the self, their beliefs inevitably influence the ways in which they meet the spiritual needs of their clients with psychosis. This may have the result that some clients' spiritual needs are going unmet and amongst the recommendations are suggestions for raising awareness about spirituality in nurses.