J Korean Acad Womens Health Nurs.  2001 Jun;7(2):121-130.

Suffering and Spiritual Approach

• Kim MJ
• Jo KH

Abstract

Although the general concept of suffering care includes palliative care technology for terminally ill person to alleviate his pain, it is much more holistic including emotional, spiritual and other life dimension. This inclusive concept of caring can be possible with the fundamental reflection on the human suffering. Far from the concept of pain understood in the context of materialist medical approach, human suffering has many dimensions including aesthetic, psychological, and religious: its meaning is holistic. With this perspective, the experience of the suffering client must be reconsidered before one starts with an objective side or a subjective side of suffering. Indeed, the actual strategies of suffering care can be different depending on the definition of human suffering accepted by practicians. In this caring perspective, the body, mind and spirit are integrated so the objectivity and subjectivity can merge; the extended awareness with inner resource or energy, and the positive thinking about the God is meaningful especially for dying person, his family members and the caring team. Despite this impending importance of the inclusive understanding of human suffering, the actual nursing practice still does not reflect this growing understanding of human suffering. This approach, which tried to pursuit the more fundamental meaning of human suffering, can contribute to the development of nursing education and practice which pay attention to the more inclusive view of human suffering.

MeSH Terms

Education, Nursing
Humans
Nursing
Palliative Care
Terminally Ill
Thinking