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The New England Journal of Medicine had an editorial that addressed
this very question, reviewing the facts and discussing the issue
further. Some of the things mentioned included:
- most people believe in heaven and hell, the healing power of
prayer, and the capacity of faith to aid in the recovery from
disease.
- 77 percent of hospitalized patients want physicians to consider
their spiritual needs
- The National
Institute for Healthcare Research, a privately funded, nonprofit
organization, has published extensive literature reviews suggesting
that religious faith and practice are positively associated with
health status The organization's World Wide Web site encourages
physicians to pay more attention to religious matters and recommends
that they take a spiritual history at the time of each complete
physical examination, with any concerns raised by patients addressed
during follow-up visits.
- The National
Institute on Aging and Harvard Medical School sponsor regular
meetings on the integration of spirituality and medical practice.
- Nearly 30 U.S. medical schools now offer courses on religion,
spirituality, and health
- The American
Association of Medical Colleges has co-sponsored a conference
entitled "Spirituality and Medicine: Curricular Development"
for the past three years
There is increasing interest among the general public and the
medical community in the role of religion in medicine. Polls indicate
that the U.S. population is highly religious; most people believe
in heaven and hell, (1) the healing power of prayer, (2) and the
capacity of faith to aid in the recovery from disease. (3) The popular
press has published many articles in which religious faith and practice
have been said to promote comfort, healing, or both. A report that
77 percent of hospitalized patients wanted physicians to consider
their spiritual needs is consistent with this trend. (4)
Interest in the connection between religion and health has also
emerged in the medical community. (5,6) The National Institute for
Healthcare Research, a privately funded, nonprofit advocacy organization,
has published extensive literature reviews suggesting that religious
faith and practice are positively associated with health status.
The organization's World Wide Web site encourages physicians to
pay more attention to religious matters and recommends that they
take a spiritual history at the time of each complete physical examination,
with any concerns raised by patients addressed during follow-up
visits. In addition, the National Institute on Aging and Harvard
Medical School sponsor meetings on the integration of spirituality
and medical practice. (7) A survey of family physicians found that
they strongly support the notion that religious beliefs can promote
healing. (8) Some physicians believe that going to church promotes
health, (9) argue for spiritual and religious interventions in medical
practice, hope that the wall between medicine and religion will
be torn down, (10) and assert that "the medicine of the future
is going to be prayer and Prozac." (11)
Nearly 30 U.S. medical schools now offer courses on religion, spirituality,
and health. (12) The American Association of Medical Colleges has
cosponsored a conference entitled "Spirituality and Medicine:
Curricular Development" for the past three years, and each
year it has attracted more than 100 physicians, faculty members,
and chaplains from hospitals and medical schools throughout the
United States.
Is There Empirical Evidence of a Link between Religion and Health?
Numerous authors (12,13,14,15) assert that there is substantial
empirical support for the idea that religious activities promote
health. We believe the evidence is generally weak and unconvincing,
since it is based on studies with serious methodologic flaws, conflicting
findings, and data that lack clarity and specificity. (16) Two recently
reported, well-conducted studies, however, have shown that attendance
at religious services is associated with reduced mortality. (17,18)
Some studies report that patients want physicians to attend to
their spiritual concerns. King and Bushwick found that 48 percent
of the patients they surveyed indicated that they wanted their physicians
to pray with them. (4) Maugans and Wadland reported that 40 percent
of the patients in their study wanted physicians to discuss religious
issues with them. (25) According to a report by Ehman et al., two
thirds of patients in an outpatient practice at a university hospital
said they would be interested in having a physician inquire about
their religious or spiritual beliefs if they became gravely ill.
(26) These data have prompted some to remark that, regardless of
the evidence, "we should address [religion in medical practice]
because the patient surveys are saying that we should be addressing
it." (5)
The New England Journal of Medicine
-- June 22, 2000 -- Vol. 342, No. 25
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