RELIGION AND BELIEF MATTER

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RELIGION AND BELIEF MATTER

• AN INFORMATION RESOURCE FOR HEALTHCARE STAFF
• Geoff Lachlan,
• Fair For All Religion Belief Project,
• Scottish Inter Faith Council

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THE GODFACTOR IN HEALTHCARE
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Fair for All Religion and Belief Project

• Scottish Inter Faith Council
• Scottish Government Health Directorates
• Healthcare Chaplaincy Training and Development
  Unit

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BACKGROUND

• HDL (2002) 76 Spiritual Care in NHS
• WHO Definition of Health
• New Religious Legislation
• The need for FFA Religion Guidance

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Methodology

• Visit to all 14 territorial Health Boards
• Lead Chaplains
• Equality/Diversity Officers
• 13 Faith / Belief Focus Groups
• Literature search for evidence base

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Aims of Project

1. To review the context for responding to religious
   and belief needs
2. To review the evidence base for supporting
   Healthcare Chaplaincy

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What is the Context?
Christian 64 3,294,600
Muslim 0.84 42,000
Buddhist 0.13 6,800
Sikh 0.13 6,600
Jewish 0.13 6,400
Hindu 0.11 5,600
Others 0.53 27,000
No Religion 27.5 1,394,500
Not answered 6.5
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RELIGION IN BRITAIN SINCE 1945,Grace Davie
(1994)

• Believing without belonging..

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Christian Roots, Contemporary Society, Lynda
Barley, 2006

• 55 believe in a patterning to life
• 67 believe in a Supernatural Force
• 69 believe in a Soul
• 76 admit to a Religious/Spiritual experience

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New Trends in Religions Data

• Attending church regularly now increased for
  first time since 1950s.
• ..........nearly all due to Catholic East
  European migration.

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New Legislation

• Employment Equality (Religion/Belief) Regulations
  2003
• Equality Act (Part 2) 2006

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Religion / Belief is Different to Other
Equalities

• Not so legislation- driven
• Chosen, unlike age, disability, gender,
  ethnicity, sex orientation
• Spiritual Care Providers are part of the M/D
  Health Team

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What are Religious Needs?

• Most people are not Religious
• All people are Spiritual in some way

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How are Religious Needs Responded To?

• Take account of/respect beliefs, rituals,
  practices, etc. appropriate
• Ensure NHS does not at any stage compromise or
  discriminate
• Where possible, ensure availability of Faith
  community reps. for religious care

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Why Respond to Religious Needs?

• The Moral Case
• The Legal Case
• The Business Case, esp. Medical aspects

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What is the Link Between Religion and Health?

• Just responsible members
• of a caring club?

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or is it Psycho-Neuro-Immunology..?

• The study of how psycho-social factors that
  affect our state of wellbeing can influence the
  bodys immune system through neuroendocrine
  pathways (nerve connections that regulate
  hormones)

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How Stress Gets Under Your Skin Psychobiological
Studies of Social Status, Stress, and Health

• Social networks, etc. that boost
• self-esteem are protective
• against the effects of stress.

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Stress is a Normal Physiological Response

• Chronic Stress is not!!

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Of Molecules and Mind Stress, the Individual and
the Social Environment

• Chronic stress can produce changes to cellular
  structure of brain can be reversed by relieving
  the stress

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What is the Evidence Base for Responding to
Religious Needs?

• Harold Koenig, 2001, 1200 studies, Religion and
  Health, 1900-2000

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There is Evidence that Something About Religion
can Provide Health Benefits

• Basak Coruh, 2005, Does religious Activity
  Improve Clinical Outcomes? A Ciritcal Review of
  the Recent Literature, The Journal of Science
  and Healing, Vol 1, 3, 186-191

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A Consensus is Emerging in the Literature that
Evidence Exists to Support the Provision of
Spiritual Care in the Healthcare Setting

• Peter Speck, 2005, The Evidence Base for
  Spiritual Care, Nursing Management,
• Vol 12, 6, 28-31

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Spirituality Involves a Dimension of Human
Experience that Psychiatrists are Increasingly
Interested in Because of its Potential Benefits
to Mental Health.

• Royal College of Psychiatrists Special Interest
  Group, Spirituality and Mental Health, 1999

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Such Evidence as We Have is Strongly Suggestive
of Positive Links Between Religion/Spirituality
and Personal Wellbeing

• Sandra Carlisle, 2006, University of Glasgow
  Centre for Population and Health

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Spiritual Awareness is to be Encouraged
Because of the Benefits it can Bring to the Human
Experience, Including Disease in Our Society
Today
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Absence of Evidence Does not Necessarily Mean
Evidence of Absence

• Harriet Mowat, 2007, The Potential for the
  Efficacy of Healthcare Chaplaincy Spiritual
  Care in UK A Scoping Study

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Summary of Findings

• There is a theoretical basis linking
  Religion/Spirituality and Health
• In practice, the link appears to be a positive
  one
• The R.C. Psychiatrists are supporting this link
• NICE including Spiritual Care in its Palliative
  Care guidelines
• Responding to Religious needs should support
  Spiritual needs
• which will provide true HOLISTIC care

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13 Faith / Belief Focus Groups

• From a religious/humanist point of view, what
  was important for you when admitted to hospital?

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What are the Challenges?

• Responding to religious needs as Generic
  Chaplaincy
• East European arrivals
• Narrow interpretation of Data Protection Act
• Increasing out-of-hours work

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What are the Challenges?

• Increasing demands of Pastoral care for staff
• Ongoing lack of clarity about Religion/Spiritualit
  y
• Staff enthusiastic for training how?
• Lack of consistent data collection

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Conclusions

• You are a vital part of the M/D Healthcare
  Team..
• and thus must become AHPs
• You have a large role in Pastoral care of the
  staff
• You need more practical research for your
  evidence base

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