Effect of Spiritual Care Training on Moral Sensitivity and Professional Competence in Emergency Nurses

Background and Objectives: Educating nurses on the principles and values of spiritual care contributes to a deeper understanding of moral issues. This study aimed to determine the effect of training emergency nurses in spiritual care on their moral sensitivity and professional competence. Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study with a control group that was conducted in 2023 on 53 nurses who worked in the emergency departments of two hospitals in Qom, Iran. Spiritual education was provided to the experimental group through a four-hour workshop conducted over two days, as well as a virtual educational module presented over a period of two weeks. Questionnaires on moral sensitivity and professional competence in spiritual care were completed before, immediately after, and two months after the intervention. Data were analyzed through the chi-square test, independent samples t-test, and the repeated measures analysis of variance using SPSS software version 16. Results: Baseline characteristics were similar in both groups. The moral sensitivity scores of the intervention group were significantly higher than the control group after the intervention and at the follow-up time (P<0.0001). At the post-intervention (P<0.0001) and follow-up time (P=0.010), the mean score of professional competence in the intervention group was significantly higher than that in the control group. Conclusion: Providing spiritual care training to emergency nurses can enhance their spiritual care competence and moral performance.