About the project
Spirituality is a fundamental feature of being a person. Spirituality is also a concept we tend to define cognitively. But how can spirituality be recognized and understood in the case of a person with dementia (PWD)?
Substantial research is made to improve treatment and care for PWD. However, there is not much research on religion, spirituality and existential meaning-making towards this group. An obstacle in doing research on PWD, particularly in the stage of severe dementia, is the decreased ability to communicate.
This project is a qualitative patient oriented study with two objectives. The first objective is to reveal a deeper understanding of how faith and spirituality appears in persons with severe dementia, and the significance of this in terms of resilience and quality of life. Ten patients are observed by participant observation in a hospital bed unit, over a period of four months. The second objective is together with relatives and caregivers, explore possible clinical implications of the findings. The findings from the participant observation will be discussed in two focus groups, one consisting of professional caregivers and a second group consisting of relatives.
Background
- Theology study
- Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE)
Research groups
EXISTENCE research group