Nurses’ Perceptions of Spirituality and Spiritual Care and Influencing Factors in Türkiye, Italy, and Albania: A Multicultural Study

TL;DR

This study examines how nurses in Türkiye, Italy, and Albania view spirituality and spiritual care, and what factors influence their perceptions.

Contribution

The study provides new insights into multicultural differences in nurses' spiritual care perceptions and their influencing factors.

Findings

Nurses' mean score on the Spirituality and Spiritual Care Rating Scale was above average.

Country, marital status, religious belief, and spiritual practices influenced nurses' perceptions.

Spirituality and spiritual care were closely associated with religion in all three countries.

Abstract

The present study aimed to explore the perceptions of spirituality and spiritual care among nurses who work in three different countries with different cultures as well as the factors influencing their perception. This is a cross-sectional multicultural study conducted with a total of 1090 nurses from Türkiye, Albania, and Italy. Data were collected through the “Individual Information Form” and the “Spirituality and Spiritual Care Rating Scale”. Nurses’ mean score on the Spirituality and Spiritual Care Rating Scale was above average. It was also found that country, marital status, religious belief, Islamic religion, training for spiritual care, and using spiritual practices to cope with difficulties or illnesses influenced nurses’ perception of spirituality and spiritual care. It was concluded that nurses from the three countries associated spirituality and spiritual care with religion and that some personal characteristics influenced their perceptions of spiritual care. The results highlight the need for training in spiritual care to improve nurses’ perceptions and practices of spiritual care.