Evaluation of the perception of Iranian nurses towards spirituality in NICUs

Background: Holistic care is the evaluation of the physical and mental states of individuals. Considering the importance of spirituality in healthcare and its pivotal role as the first step toward providing spiritual care, this study was conducted to determine the perception of Iranian nurses towards spirituality in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Methods: This study was conducted on nine participants using qualitative content analysis. In addition, purposive sampling was used to select the participants. Study setting was the NICUs at hospitals affiliated to Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran. Data collection was performed through semi-structured interviews with the samples. Results: Three main categories were discussed in this study, as follows: 1) “Meaning of spirituality” with three subcategories of “connectedness to God”, “sincerity”, and “prayers or recourse to Ahl-al-Bayt”; 2) “nature of spirituality” with three subcategories of “peace of mind”, “nursing performance beyond physical health care”, and “problem-solving”; 3) “respect for spiritual beliefs” with two subcategories of “respect for beliefs and values” and “persistent faith”. Conclusion: The results of this study indicated that the perception of Iranian nurses toward spirituality is directly influenced by their religious tendencies, which denotes the importance of educational courses on spirituality for nurses. Therefore, it is recommended that nursing managers and directors implement training programs for the personnel in order to enhance spirituality.