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Incorporating Spirituality into Health Sciences Education

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Abstract

Researchers are beginning to collect empiric data about coping mechanisms of health science students. Yet, there is an important aspect of coping with stress that is only partially addressed in health sciences curricula: students’ spiritual well-being. In this essay, we describe a course in spirituality and health care that we offered to fourth-year medical students, as well as a small empirical study we conducted to assess students’ spiritual needs and practices. We then offer reflections on the broad applicability of this work to students in the health sciences more generally, including suggestions for curriculum interventions that may ensure students’ success.

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Notes

  1. We take the concepts of spirituality and religion to be distinct. Spirituality is the broader term, and refers to those commitments, worldviews, or perspectives that serve as foundational or as ultimate sources of meaning for individuals. Such commitments may be religious; that is, they may involve a community of believers who share a particular theology, history, and/or tradition, but they may also be atomistic, humanistic, or idiosyncratic. As a result of this distinction, we consider it important not to use these terms interchangeably. We will specify “religion” when we mean something more particular than the concept of “spiritual.”

  2. We targeted medical students simply because that was the genesis of the request. However, the content of the course is relevant for all students in the health sciences.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Master of Arts in Bioethics Program, School of Medicine, Emory University, Center for Ethics, 1531 Dickey Drive, Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA

    Toby L. Schonfeld

  2. Department of Biostatistics, College of Public Health, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA

    Kendra K. Schmid

  3. Clarkson College, Omaha, NE, USA

    Deborah Boucher-Payne

Authors
  1. Toby L. Schonfeld
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  2. Kendra K. Schmid
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  3. Deborah Boucher-Payne
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Correspondence to Toby L. Schonfeld.

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Schonfeld, T.L., Schmid, K.K. & Boucher-Payne, D. Incorporating Spirituality into Health Sciences Education. J Relig Health 55, 85–96 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-014-9972-6

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