A Mixed-Methods Approach to Understanding the Role of Religion and Spirituality in Healthcare Provider Well-Being

The objective of the current study was to define the religious and spiritual (R&S) beliefs of healthcare providers and examine how those beliefs translate into clinical practice. A mixed-methods approach was used to administer and analyze an online survey that included individual-level, occupational, and R&S demographic questions, The Duke University Religion Index, and open-ended questions about the use of R&S in clinical practice. Analyses included descriptive statistics (quantitative [QUAN]), content analysis (qualitative [QUAL]), and chi-square test of independence and Fisher's exact test (QUAN + QUAL). The final analytic cohort was composed of 387 participants. Providers included primary care (26.9%), nurses (27.1%), allied health (23.5%), and mental health (22.5%) professionals. Most participants reported being religious and spiritual (42.9%), followed by only spiritual (36.6%) or neither (20.3%). More providers acknowledged using R&S for coping with work-related stress rather than for clinical decision-making. Still, the use of R&S associated with patient morbidity, mortality, and end-of-life issues emerged as a subtheme for both topics. Overall, there was no difference among provider groups relative to the use of R&S in clinical decision-making and in coping (p = .350 and p = .746, respectively). Among respondents who did use R&S, there were differences among provider groups on how R&S beliefs were used (both ps < .05). Understanding the role of R&S among healthcare providers may be necessary for addressing and targeting interventions to improve symptoms of burnout and healthcare provider well-being.