Religion and Health
Year:2016 | Volume:4 | Issue:2 |Papers Count:7

Background and Purpose: Belief in God and hope play an important role in the lives of all the members of the society, particularly in the lives of the patients. Regardig this, the aim of the present study was to compare the role of religious beliefs in hopefulness and quality of life among the cancer and non-cancer patients in Shiraz, Iran in 2011.Materials and Methods: This case-control comparative study was conducted on 60 patients referring to the Namazi Hospital in Shiraz.Therefore, the study population corresponded to two groups of 30 (i.e., 15 males and 15 females in each gorup) cancer and non-cancer patients referring to the Chemotherapy Unit and other units, respectively, through simple random sampling method. The data were collected using the religious beliefs (2006), hopefulness (1991), and brief quality of life questionnaires (1996). The data analysis was performed using the descriptive and inferential statistics (independent t-test) through the SPSS 16.Results: According to the results of the study, there were statistically significant differences between the cancer and non-cancer patients in terms of the religious beliefs, hopefulness, and quality of life.Conclusion: As the findigns of the present study indicated, the religious beliefs could improve the mental condition of the cancer patients resulting in increased life expectancy and quality of life in these patients.

Background and Purpose: Spiritual well-being is one of the essential aspects of health in coping with disease. Since one of the major bases of diseases is spiritual insecurity due to lack of spiritual dimension, this study aimed to investigate spiritual health and its related factors in hemodialysis patients.Materials and Methods: This descriptive-analytical study was conducted on 81 hemodialysis patients referring to the Imam Khomeini Hospital of Sari, Iran, in 2015. Sampling was performed by stratified census method. The data was collected using a demographic form and Palotzian and Elison spiritual health questionnaire. To analyze the data, descriptive and analytical statistics, including mean and Pearson correlation coefficient, were used in SPSS 20.Results: The mean scores of spiritual, religious, and existential health were 70.93±16.79, 36.54±8.71, and 34.39±8.61, respectively. There was not a significant relationship between gender, number of family members, number of children, residence condition, hookah use, marital and economic status, and spiritual health of patients (P>0.05). However, a significant relationship was found between age, housing condition, and smoking status of the patients with their spiritual health (P<0.05).Conclusion: The results of the present study showed that most of the patients had an average spiritual health and that their religious health was slightly higher than their existential health, which is normal in our culture. Lack of spiritual health, particularly in chronic disease patients, is a predisposing factor for many mental, social, and somatic problems. Therefore, spirituality and religious practices such as praying play crucial roles in accepting the disease.

Background and Purpose: Death anxiety is a common problem in patients with chronic and hard-to-treat diseases, which can affect mental health of these patients. Spiritual health is an important aspect of human health. Thus, we aimed to investigate the relationship between death anxiety with spiritual health in female patients suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS).Materials and Methods: This study was performed in all female MS patients who referred to the Special Diseases Department in Rafsanjan, Iran, in 2015 (n=116). The study instrument consisted of spiritual health questionnaire (20 items) designed by Palutzian and Ellison and death anxiety questionnaire (15 items) developed by Templer. The data was analyzed using Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis simultaneously.Results: The total mean scores of spiritual, religious, and existential health were 98.10±14.87, 49.26±8.08, and 48.83±7.72, respectively. The results showed a significant relationship between spiritual health and its dimensions (religious and existential health) with death anxiety (P<0.05).Conclusion: The results of the present study demonstarted that most of the MS patients had moderate spiritual health and that their religious health level was slightly higher than their existential health, which seems normal in our culture.

Background and Purpose: Patience is one of the important indicators of the personal and social health. It is essential to foster this virtue by considering its structures since it fulfills crucial functions. Regarding this, the aim of the present study was to predict the patience based on the worldly and divine attachments among students.Materials and Methods: This correlational study was conducted on 209 students of Shiraz University, who were selected through convenience sampling technique. The data were collected using the Patience Scale, attachment to God inventory, and worldly attachment questionnaire. The data analysis was performed through the stepwise and simultaneous regression.Results: The results showed that the worldly attachment and avoidant attachment style can significantly and negatively predict the patients. In addition, the secure attachment to God could predict the patience significantly and positively.Conclusion: Considering the role of this religious virtue in mental health, the therapists and researchers should pay special attention to its underlying components.

Background and Purpose: Spirituality is one of the four dimensions of human existence. Given the importance of spiritual health and it promotion, this study was conducted to investigate the effect of continuous and systematic religious programs on the spiritual health among the female university students.Materials and Methods: This case-control study was conducted on 50 female students studying at Beytol Hoda University of Amol, Iran (case group) and 52 students majoring at other state universities (control group).The data were collected using the spiritual health questionnaire developed by Ellison and Pulytzan. The data analysis was performed using the nonparametric tests through the SPSS 19 software.Results: According to the results, the mean scores of the spirituality in the students participating in the continuous and systematic religious programs were 101.41±14.85 and 93.39±15.51 in the case and control groups, respectively (P<0.01). In addition, the mean score of the religious and existential health was significantly higher in the case group than that in the control group (P<0.01). The majority of the students enjoying higher spiritual health (100-120) were in the case group, while the control group had medium spiritual health (41-99). The results demonstrated that this difference was statistically significant (P<0.01).Conclusion: As the findings of the present study indicated, the students participating in the systemic religious programs had higher spiritual health in terms of both religious and existential dimensions. It seems that the religious programs held at the universities help the students to improve their spiritual health.

Anxiety is one of the most common psychiatric disorders during pregnancy, which could have many negative effects on the physical and mental health of the mother, child, and eventually the family. Despite all the efforts in the medical treatment of the anxiety in the pregnant mothers, little attention has been given to the spiritual treatment in this regard. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of the religious teachings in the reduction of the anxiety in the pregnant women. In this review, the data were extracted, analyzed, and categorized by studying the major Persian and Latin databases and publications related to the topic of interest and using proper keywords. In our society, religion is considered as the most effective psychological support that can provide the meaning of life during the lifetime. Religion could be an important contribution to the individual, especially in difficult situations and crises. Many psycho-emotional disorders are associated with spiritual matters; therefore, these disorders could not be successfully diagnosed and managed without the consideration of the spiritual aspects. Based on the retrieved articles, the implementation of the spiritual treatment based on the religious teachings was reported to be successful in reducing the anxiety in different groups. Consequently, further studies are recommended to be conducted investigating the effects of spiritual treatment based on the religious teachings on the anxiety level of the pregnant women. This will be a major step forward in improving the mental health of the mothers and consequently the mental health of the children and the family, which will not be achieved except in the light of Islam.

Background and Purpose: Anxiety is one of the most common mental health problems in the current society. The present study was carried out to investigate the levels of spiritual health and anxiety in students of Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery of Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Rafsanjan, Iran.Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional, descriptive-analytical study was performed on 314 students of Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery in Rafsanjan, Iran. Data was acquired using the Palutzian and Ellison questionnaire of spiritual well-being and Beck Anxiety Inventory. The obtained data was analyzed using parametric statistical tests such as independent t-test in SPSS 20.Results: Spiritual health was at a moderate level (49.4%), while anxiety was low (33%) among these students. We noted a negative correlation between spiritual health and anxiety (r=-0.398).Conclusion: As spiritual well-being diminishes anxiety, our results indicated the significance of addressing spirituality in students of Nursing and Midwifery. To promote spirituality in these students, appropriate plans should be adopted.