From the struggle of defining to the understanding of dignity: A commentary on Barclay (2016) “In sickness and in dignity: A philosophical account of the meaning of dignity in health care”

We were pleased to see that Barclay (2016) very recently addressed the important issue of dignity in health care. In the paper entitled “In sickness and in dignity: A philosophical account of the meaning of dignity in health care”, the author (Barclay, 2016:136) promotes an understanding and sensitivity for patients’ dignity as ‘core’ outlining critical responsibilities of health care practitioners. This enticing title left us very curious to know more about the philosophical perspective of dignity in health care that the paper purports to offe

Ethical dimensions of paediatric nursing: A rapid evidence assessment

© 2016, © The Author(s) 2016. Background: Paediatric nurses often face complex situations requiring decisions that sometimes clash with their own values and beliefs, or with the needs of the children they care for and their families. Paediatric nurses often use new technology that changes the way they provide care, but also reduces their direct interaction with the child. This may generate ethical issues, which nurses should be able to address in the full respect of the child. Research question and objectives: The purpose of this review is to describe the main ethical dimensions of paediatric nursing. Our research question was, ‘What are the most common ethical dimensions and competences related to paediatric nursing?’ Research design: A rapid evidence assessment. Method: According to the principles of the rapid evidence assessment, we searched the PubMed, SCOPUS and CINAHL databases for papers published between January 2001 and March 2015. These papers were then independently read by two researchers and analysed according to the inclusion criteria. Ethical considerations: Since this was a rapid evidence assessment, no approval from the ethics committee was required. Findings: Ten papers met our inclusion criteria. Ethical issues in paediatric nursing were grouped into three areas: (a) ethical issues in paediatric care, (b) social responsibility and (c) decision-making process. Conclusion: Few studies investigate the ethical dimensions and aspects of paediatric nursing, and they are mainly qualitative studies conducted in critical care settings based on nurses’ perceptions and experiences. Paediatric nurses require specific educational interventions to help them resolve ethical issues, contribute to the decision-making process and fulfil their role as advocates of a vulnerable population (i.e. sick children and their families). Further research is needed to investigate how paediatric nurses can improve the involvement of children and their families in decision-making processes related to their care plan

The spiritual journey of infertile couples: discussing the opportunity for spiritual care

Infertility is a worldwide public health issue that exerts an in-depth impact on couples, families, communities and the individual. This reproductive health condition, along with fertility treatments, often forces couples to question their purpose and meaning in life, and to begin a spiritual journey. Nursing and midwifery literature describes the care of those living with infertility, but often lacks a clear approach of the spiritual dimension, and diagnosis and interventions may not be effectively addressed. In this paper, we present a discussion about spirituality and the assessment of spiritual needs such as hope, beliefs, meaning and satisfaction in life. In addition, spiritual needs are defined, for both nurses and midwives, and spiritual interventions are proposed for promoting couples’ resilience and spiritual well-being. Spirituality should be considered from the beginning to the end of life. It is necessary to translate this into the development and implementation of both specific policies regarding a spiritual approach and advanced education and training programs for nurses and midwives who care for infertile couples.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Editorial: Special Issue “International Conference of Spirituality in Healthcare. Sowing the Seeds”—Trinity College Dublin 2015

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CONCERNS ABOUT THE SCHOLARLY DEVELOPMENT OF THE NURSING PROFESSION AND THE ACADEMIC NURSING PIPELINE

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Special Issue “International Conference of Spirituality in Healthcare. Creating Space for Spirituality in Healthcare,”—Trinity College Dublin 2017

This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).This is an editorial of a Special Issue pertaining to the “International Conference of Spirituality in Healthcare. Creating a Space for Spirituality in Healthcare” Trinity College Dublin 2017. This was the third International Spirituality in Healthcare Conference hosted by Trinity College Dublin, with future annual conferences planned. This conference has provided a space to facilitate clinicians, healthcare practitioners and academics to present and debate current issues with this domain. This editorial summarises some of the papers that have been published arising from that conference.publishedVersio