Abstract
Purpose: To investigate the significance of a program to enhance the communication of university hospital nurses with cancer patients who search for meaning of life by analyzing changes after the intervention. Methodology: This was a pre/post intervention comparison study. Participants were 24 nurses. Murata's program for enhancing spiritual care-giving skills was employed for intervention, which consists of a lecture and discussion, followed by 3 sessions of 4 hours each (1 per month). The questionnaire of Morita et al. evaluating practices and attitudes toward terminal cancer patients was completed at four stages, which were before intervention, 1 months after, 3 months after, and 6 months after intervention. Data were analyzed using SPSS ver.21. This study was approved by Keio University ethics board. Results and Discussion: Participants were 23 females and a male, being aged 20 to 50 years with 3 to 33 years (average 12.5±8.2 years) of clinical experience. Positive attitude changes were noted at the four stages for "increased Confidence about communicating with terminal patients" and "decreased Sense of Helplessness" (p<0.05).The "Positive Appraisal" score changed between before and after 6 month (p<0.05). The "Self－Reported Practice" score showed a switch towards a positive attitude. These results suggested that intervention increased confidence in communicating and helped university hospital nurses to assist their patients.
