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Patient Spirituality as a Component of Supportive Care: Assessment and Intervention

  • Palliative and Supportive Care (MP Davis, Section Editor)
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National supportive care guidelines for patients with cancer include recognition of patients’ spirituality and spiritual needs. Experts differ on how best to address this dimension to our patients’ lives. Some suggest that patients’ medical team should take on spiritual care, and others suggest referral to chaplains or collaboration with outside clergy. In our view, the patient’s medical team ought to best acknowledge patient spirituality when so desired by the patient, but intervention in the case of serious spiritual crisis ought to be the responsibility of those with specific training in this realm. For some patients, “concordance” between the specific spiritual tradition of the patient and chaplain is necessary where for others, non-denominational, secular, or inter-faith chaplaincy services are welcome. The central role for physicians and nurses in this area, is listening, awareness, respect, and where necessary, referral.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Hematology/Medical Oncology, New York Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital, 506 6th Street Brooklyn, New York, NY, 11215, USA

    Karina D’Souza MD, MPH

  2. Hematology/Medical Oncology, New York Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital, Weill Cornell Medical College, 506 6th Street Brooklyn, New York, NY, 11215, USA

    Alan B. Astrow MD

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  1. Karina D’Souza MD, MPH
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Correspondence to Alan B. Astrow MD.

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Karina D’Souza and Alan B. Astrow declare they have no conflict of interest.

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D’Souza, K., Astrow, A.B. Patient Spirituality as a Component of Supportive Care: Assessment and Intervention. Curr. Treat. Options in Oncol. 21, 11 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11864-020-0701-y

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