Quality-of-life and spirituality

Spirituality has been identified as an important dimension of quality-of-life. The objective of this study was to review the literature on quality-of-life and spirituality, their association, and assessment tools. A search was conducted of the keyterms 'quality-of-life' and 'spirituality' in abstract or title in the databases PsycINFO and PubMed/Medline between 1979-2005, complemented by a new search at PUBMED from 2006-2016. Quality-of-life is a new concept, which encompasses and transcends the concept of health, being composed of multiple domains: physical, psychological, environmental, among others. The missing measure in health has been defined as the individual's perception of their position in life in the context of culture and value system in which they live and in relation to their goals, expectations, standards, and concerns. There is consistent evidence of an association between quality-of-life and religiosity/spirituality (R/S), through studies with reasonable methodological rigour, using several variables to assess R/S (e.g. religious affiliation, religious coping, and prayer/spirituality). There are also several valid and reliable instruments to evaluate quality-of-life and spirituality. Further studies are needed, however, especially in Brazil. Such studies will provide empirical data to be used in planning health interventions based on spirituality, seeking a better quality-of-life. In the last 10 years, research is consistently growing about quality-of-life and spirituality in many countries, and also in many areas of health research.

Use of instruments to measure quality of life among healthy and ill adults in community settings

International interest in quality of life (QoL) has been affected by patients' prolonged survival, the increasingly aging population, the increase in chronic conditions and the increasing costs of health care. This has also led to the development of QoL instruments that meet the psychometric criteria necessary for reliable and valid outcome measures in research, health policy decision-making and, increasingly, in clinical practice. Despite the proliferation of QoL instruments available to inform best practice, clinicians seldom routinely apply them. One of the barriers to using QoL instruments is the unfamiliarity nurses have with existing instruments. In order to increase community health nurses' familiarity with existing QoL assessments, the aim of this paper is to describe five instruments and modules that have been developed by the World Health Organization's Quality of Life Assessment Group for the assessment of QoL among healthy and ill adults and to describe how their applicability could enhance evidence-based practice in community nursing.