1. Introduction to Psychospiritual Care

This is the first module (CPD7060) of the three modules that make up the PGCert in Psychospiritual Care. This module can also be taken by Oxford Health staff as part of the Masters Pathway towards the MSc in Professional Practice in either Mental Healthcare or Physical Healthcare.

Module aims

The module aims to provide the practitioner with the knowledge and skills to contribute to personalised psychospiritual care, enhancing service users’ and their carers’ experiences in a health or social care setting and promoting their spiritual well-being. It will encourage the practitioner to explore, analyse and evaluate concepts of spirituality, faith and holistic care and reflect on how their own personal experiences of faith, belief and spirituality relate to their practice.

The module aims also include supporting the practitioner to analyse historical and contemporary understandings of psychospiritual care, to reflect on the nature of spiritual distress and well-being, and to consider approaches to spiritual assessment and intervention.

Learning outcomes

On successful completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Critically evaluate and effectively communicate the significance of faith, belief and spirituality in people’s lives;
• Explore and critically reflect on their own faith, beliefs and spirituality in order to enhance their self-awareness in the care of service users;
• Critically examine historical and contemporary understandings of spiritual care within health and social care contexts;
• Critically analyse the relationships between faith, belief and spirituality and between spiritual, medical and psychotherapeutic approaches to health and social care.

Topics covered

• Concepts of spirituality, faith, religion, belief and how these fit into psychospiritual care
• Cultural sensitivity
• Spiritual care and chaplaincy in different health and social care contexts (including acute care, mental health care, counselling and psychotherapy, palliative care, primary care, residential care and community care)
• Holistic care; concepts of body, mind & spirit and the relationship between person and environment (social, physical, natural, beauty, values); transcendence; the individual and the collective
• Religious and spiritual experience, concepts of the sacred and of enlightenment, rite and ritual, prayer and meditation, fasting and feasting
• Spiritual distress and well-being (hope/despair)
• Spiritual assessment and intervention
• Self-care and the care of others

Assessment

The assessment strategy for this module is designed to assess the learners’ understanding of psychospiritual care in health and social care contexts. It will also require them to relate this to their understanding of their own faith/belief/spirituality in order to reflect on how this may affect their professional role, how to mitigate any challenges in this area and identify opportunities for personal and professional development.

One 3500-word essay, critically exploring the learner’s own faith, belief, spirituality or philosophy of life in its cultural and/or family context. Reflecting on the impact of this on their professional role, students will explore the possibilities for personal and professional development regarding their learning about psychospiritual and holistic care in health and social care contexts. This assessment requires the demonstration of self-awareness of their learning, applied to their current and future practice.

Opportunities for formative assessment and feedback

Students will be given the opportunity to make a short presentation to the group about their own lived experience: what motivated them to do this module, the key life experiences that led up to this, and how this has impacted their choice and practice of their profession. Peer and tutor feedback will be facilitated in brief discussion following the presentation.

Feedback on ideas / reflection is available from both peers and tutors through group discussion throughout the module, and students may submit one early draft or outline plan of their written assignment in week 5 for feedback.

As well as group tutorial sessions focusing on the assessment, a one-to-one tutorial for formative feedback on plans/drafts for their assignment is offered at a mutually convenient time in the second half of the module. The tutorials also present an opportunity to discuss feedback already received and its impact on future planning.