SPIRITUAL CARE IN CARE HOMES FOR OLDER PEOPLE

Spiritual Care In A Faith And Two Non-Faith Care Homes For Older People

Chapter 8: Conclusions

Introduction

This chapter is structured in two sections. The first section presents the conclusions of the study, highlighting significant points of discovery on understandings and practice of spiritual care of the three participant groups. Section two re-visits the three research questions raised in Chapter One. Implications for policy and practice are then discussed. This is followed by a discussion on the key strengths and limitations of the study and suggestions for future research.

The important issue of how best to determine and improve the practice of spiritual care offered to older people in care homes needs addressing. At present, there is no consensus about what constitutes quality, spiritual care, or how to assess its provision. This may be explained by two factors: the absence of quality tools with which to measure, monitor and assess spiritual care (McSherry, 2004), and the gap between the understanding of quality spiritual care and the methods used to evaluate it. Much of the literature has suggested that training opportunities in a care home setting, may contribute to improved provision of spiritual care (names).

Spiritual care needs to be part of the in-service education programme and that all the staff, including the kitchen/domestic staff should be encouraged to attend. The ideal of an adequately 'trained' workforce (Mowat, 2008) was welcomed by the managers and most of the care staff in the three homes.

The findings of this exploratory study into spiritual care in care homes reveal a diversity of infrastructure of understanding, internal and external spiritual care resources, and the subsequent provision of spiritual care within individual facilities. The literature review revealed the paucity of documentation on models of spiritual care in care homes. Hence, as the need for the support of adequate skills and training for managers and care staff, there is also a need for changes in the care homes' policies and procedures.

The presented analysis suggests that a key to solidifying a spiritual care programme would be a commitment in the form of written documentation regarding spiritual care, such as policies, procedures, and a definition of spiritual care from every care home which should include:

•A written definition of spiritual care;

•A mission statement which includes spiritual care; written policies and procedures regarding spiritual care;

•An organizational structure within which spiritual care decisions are made;

•defined personnel (chaplain) responsible for, and involved in, the provision of spiritual care.

If spiritual care is to be recognized, integrated and resourced as an essential element of care for older people in care homes, its profile needs to be raised. Within care homes older people can present complex and challenging personal needs. My findings suggest that there is a need to ensure that the spiritual needs of older people are not moved down the priority list of care, but should be recognized and resourced in each care home's budget. Spiritual care should be an integral part of the institutions essential services and programmers, such ...