Healing Hospital and Healing

¶ … Healing Hospital and the Importance of Spirituality

Chapman (2003) defines a Healing Hospital as being about "loving service to others" (p.4). This paper examines the concept of the Healing Hospital and the role that spiritually plays in that model.

Numerous theorists have argued that advances in technology, pressure on budgets, and drives for efficiency over the last few decades have shifted the focus of attention from general care giving to technological and pharmacological interventions, with the need to extend life and fix broken parts (Puchalski, 2001; Treloar, 2000). However, there has also been increased realisation, back by significant research, that better outcomes are achieved when the patient is treated in a holistic manner (Baboni, Puchalski, & Peteet, 2014; Puchalski & Mcskimming, 2006).

The Healing Hospital is based on the premise of treating the whole person, rather than just the illness (Chapman, 2003). This includes all physical needs, as well as emotional, social, and spiritual needs (Johnson, Abraham, & Parrish, 2004; Puchalski, 2001). Sulmasy's (2002) biopsychosocialspiritual model encompasses these different elements and is based on the ethical obligation on the medical profession to care for the whole person, including the intangible spiritual elements.

By accommodating all these different needs, a patient may be more comfortable, and healing may be enhanced (Chapman, 2003). Johnson et al. (2004) provides evidence for the benefit of controlling sound levels and providing privacy for patients and their families indicating the importance of the environment and providing for social needs. Effective communication, collaboration between different caregivers, and the demonstration of caring behaviors have also been demonstrated as beneficial to patients (Schmidt, 2004). When combined though the development of hospital organisational practices which pursue the provision of all these different elements, the hospital is adopting the Healing Hospital context (Lafferty, 2004).

This approach has led to the development of the interprofessional model that provides for spiritual care (Puchalski & Mcskimming, 2006). Spirituality plays a major role in this holistic approach, as it impacts on the outlook and interpretation of events by a patient, as well as the way care is provided by caregivers (Sulmasy, 2002). For example, where there is a high level of spirituality, it has been shown there is a greater potential for the patient to rely on their beliefs, resulting in lower levels of medication compliance (Kretchy, Owusu-Daaku, & Danquah, 2013). However, by addressing three issue of medicines from a spiritual context, not only will this increased risk of non-compliance be reduced, the patient may also be able to draw on their spiritual beliefs and concepts to support both the treatment and recovery, increasing their psychological residence and cope with pain and suffering associated with the situation (Diaz-Gilbert, 2014).

There have been pilot programs to assess the role of providing for spirituality in the Healing Hospital paradigm. In one collaboration between the George Washington Institute for Spirituality and Health and the Supportive Care Coalition based in Portland, a programme; the "Hospital-Based Spirituality Initiative: Creating Healing Environments" was implemented in five different faith-based hospital facilities (Puchalski & Mcskimming, 2006). The results were positive, not only for the patients but also for the caregivers (Puchalski & Mcskimming, 2006). This has been supported by subsequent research which also shows embracing the spirituality of patients will help improve their resistance and increase the process of physical and/or emotional healing (Diaz-Gilbert, 2014).

When looking at how or why this occurs, Puchalski (2001) states that patients will have a large number of questions, such as why it has happened to them, and why has it occurred at that time, and concerns over whether they would be remembered if the condition was terminal (Puchalski, 2001). These questions need to be answered, and can be difficult for the medical staff as well as the patient (Puchalski, 2001). Physicians and nurses, with knowledge and training, can help patients with deal with these struggles. Puchalski (2001) argues true healing requires consideration of all the patient's concerns, and that there is the potential for emotional healing even where physical healing may not be possible.