Spirituality in the medical practice of physicians from HC-FMUSP

• Grant number: 11/09584-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: April 01, 2012
• End date: March 31, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Maria do Patrocínio Tenório Nunes
• Grantee: Júlio César Gagliardi Filho
• Host Institution: Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina da USP (HCFMUSP). Secretaria da Saúde (São Paulo - Estado). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Spirituality, usually misunderstood as religiosity, is not a new subject in medicine. Recently, there has been a growth in the number of publications and scientific studies that states its importance to the patient, while dealing with diseases or even in the embitterment of the treatment results. However, the role of spirituality still demands a great effort in order to be accepted and understood in medical practice. For this reason, it's necessary to increase the research concerning medical education and spirituality. The main studies concerning spirituality and medical education are results of foreign studies and almost nothing was produced in Brazil. Research is mostly centered on tracing physicians' spiritual profiles and the way spirituality is dealt with in their clinical practice. Following this model, this study intends to define how spirituality is inserted into the personal and professional lives of a group of physicians linked to Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo (HCFMUSP). About 600 physicians will answer a previously validated questionary, based on already published studies on the subject. So, this project intends to understand how the physicians in Brazil largest hospital complex deal with spirituality in their clinical practice and personal life, contributing to the advance in medical education research and the development of a curriculum where spirituality has its place.(AU)