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Brazilian Physicians’ Beliefs and Attitudes Toward Patients’ Spirituality: Implications for Clinical Practice

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Abstract

A substantial amount of international research has demonstrated the impact of spirituality/religiosity (S/R) on health outcomes. However, we do not know much about physician’s beliefs and attitudes toward patient’s spirituality. The aim of this study was to evaluate the implications of physicians’ beliefs toward patient’s spirituality for clinical practice in the Brazilian context. Results of a literature review as well as an empirical research carried out on a sample of 48 Brazilian physicians, from two hospitals, regarding their beliefs and attitudes toward patient’s spirituality are presented. There appears to be an ambiguous attitude of receptivity and silence on S/R issues in clinical practice. Ethical issues related to the integration of patient’s spirituality/religiosity into health care practices are discussed.

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Notes

  1. SciELO is an electronic library that covers 344 Brazilian scientific journals.

  2. The information sources of VHL Brazil derive from National Thematic VHL instances, obeying their quality criteria and methodology. The coordination of the VHL Brazil portal is maintained by the Ministry of Health in Brazil and BIREME/PAHO/WHO.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Post-Graduate Program in Bioethics, Pontifical Catholic University of Paraná (PUCPR), Rua Brigadeiro Franco, 4185, ap. 11, Curitiba, PR, CEP 80.220.100, Brazil

    Mary Rute Gomes Esperandio

  2. Department of Theology, Faculty of Theology, Pontifical Catholic University of Paraná (PUCPR), Curitiba, PR, Brazil

    Geilson Antonio Silva Machado

Authors
  1. Mary Rute Gomes Esperandio
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  2. Geilson Antonio Silva Machado
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Correspondence to Mary Rute Gomes Esperandio.

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Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Ethical Approval

The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee (Process 48582; CAAE: 04643412.1.0000.0020) of the Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná – PUCPR - Brazil.

Informed Consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Esperandio, M.R.G., Machado, G.A.S. Brazilian Physicians’ Beliefs and Attitudes Toward Patients’ Spirituality: Implications for Clinical Practice. J Relig Health 58, 1172–1187 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-018-0707-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-018-0707-y

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