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. 2021 Jun;35(6):1071-1098.
doi: 10.1177/02692163211010384. Epub 2021 Apr 20.

Toward a socio-spiritual approach? A mixed-methods systematic review on the social and spiritual needs of patients in the palliative phase of their illness

Tom Lormans  1 , Everlien de Graaf  1 , Joep van de Geer  2 , Frederieke van der Baan  1 , Carlo Leget  3 , Saskia Teunissen  1   2
Affiliations

Toward a socio-spiritual approach? A mixed-methods systematic review on the social and spiritual needs of patients in the palliative phase of their illness

Tom Lormans et al. Palliat Med. 2021 Jun.

Abstract

Background: Patients express a variety of needs, some of which are labeled social and spiritual. Without an in-depth exploration of patients' expressions of these needs, it is difficult to differentiate between them and allocate appropriate healthcare interventions.

Aim: To gain insight into the social and spiritual needs of patients with a life-limiting illness and the distinction between these needs, as found in the research literature.

Design: A mixed-methods systematic review and meta-aggregation were conducted following the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) approach to qualitative synthesis and the PALETTE framework and were reported according to the PRISMA statement. This review was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42019133571).

Data sources: The search was conducted in PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, Scopus, and PsycInfo. Eligible studies reported social and spiritual needs from the patients' perspective and were published between January 1st 2008 and October 2020. The quality of evidence was assessed using JBI Critical Appraisal Tools.

Results: Thirty-four studies (19 qualitative, 1 mixed-methods, and 14 quantitative) were included. The five synthesized findings encompassing social and spiritual needs were: being autonomous, being connected, finding and having meaning, having a positive outlook, and dealing with dying and death.

Conclusion: What literature labels as social and spiritual needs shows great similarities and overlap. Instead of distinguishing social from spiritual needs based on patients' linguistic expressions, needs should always be explored in-depth. We propose a socio-spiritual approach that honors and preserves the multidimensionality of patients' needs and enables interdisciplinary teamwork to allocate patient-tailored care.

Keywords: Palliative care; needs assessment; pastoral care; social behavior; social support; spirituality; systematic review.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of conflicting interests: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
PRISMA flowchart.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Synthesized finding 1: being autonomous.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Synthesized finding 2: being connected.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Synthesized finding 3: finding and having meaning.
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Synthesized finding 4: having a positive outlook.
Figure 6.
Figure 6.
Synthesized finding 5: dealing with death and dying.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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