1st Edition

Religious Literacy in Hospice Care Challenges and Controversies

By Panagiotis Pentaris Copyright 2019
    214 Pages
    by Routledge

    214 Pages 9 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    This is the first book to explore how religion, belief and spirituality are negotiated in hospice care. Specifically, it considers the significant place that spiritual care has in hospice care and claims that the changing role of religion and belief in society highlights the need to re-examine how such identities are integrated in professional practice.



    Using religious literacy as a framework, the author explores how healthcare professionals in hospice care respond to religion, belief and spiritual identities of service users. Part 1 provides a comprehensive account of the content and history of the place of religion, belief and spirituality in hospice care. Part 2 examines how these topics are negotiated in hospice care by looking at three key areas: environment, professional practice and organisation. Part 3 proposes a religious literacy model applicable to hospice care and explores implications for practice and policy. Lastly, the author identifies future trends in research, policy and practice.



    Drawing on a range of theories and concepts and proposing a working model that can impact the training of future and current professionals, Religious Literary in Hospice Care should be considered essential reading for students, researchers and practitioners.



    List of figures



    List of tables



    Acknowledgements



    List of abbreviations



    Introduction



    Conversations about death



    Spiritual care



    Introducing this book



    Overview of the chapters



    References



    PART I



    Hospice care and changing religious landscape



    1 Religion, belief and spirituality in hospice care



    Introduction



    Hospice movement



    Spirituality and hospice care



    The spiritual dimension of modern hospice care



    In summary



    References



    2 Religion and belief: A changing landscape



    Introduction



    Migration



    Religious plurality and diversification



    Religious decline, secularisation and desecularisation



    Secularisation and professional practise



    Implications of religious plurality



    References



    3 Tracing religion in health and death policy



    Introduction



    What policy says about religion and belief in dying



    Religion and belief in healthcare: A new design



    Concluding thoughts



    References



    PART II



    Negotiating belief in hospice care



    4 Belief in the space



    Introduction



    Religion and materiality



    Religion and belief in the space



    Concluding thoughts



    References



    5 Hospice professionals and religion



    Introduction



    Separating religion from spirituality



    The role of religion in society



    Religion, belief, spirituality and dying



    The role of religion, belief and spirituality for service users



    References



    6 Hospice professionals and religious literacy



    Introduction



    Knowledge and understanding of religion and belief



    Skills and abilities to engage with religion and belief



    References



    7 Integrating religion and belief in hospice care



    Introduction



    Death and health policies



    Assessments



    Neutral spaces



    Religious networking



    Commemorative practises



    Concluding thoughts



    References



    PART III



    Religious literacy in hospice care



    8 Religious literacy in hospice care



    Introduction



    Religious literacy in hospice care



    Religious literacy model for hospice care



    Concluding note



    References



    Conclusions



    Implications for social policy



    Implications for professional practise



    Final thoughts



    References



    Index

    Biography

    Panagiotis Pentaris is a Senior Lecturer for the Department of Psychology, Social Work and Counselling at the University of Greenwich. He is also a Postdoc Research Fellow for the Faiths & Civil Society Unit at Goldsmiths, University of London. Panagiotis is a thanatologist, as well as a qualified social worker with specialty in hospice social work and clinical social work in end of life care. His research stretches from death policies to professional practice, and he has researched extensively about religion, belief and spirituality in end of life care.