Surgical Patients’ Perception of Spirituality on the Outcome of Surgery in Northern Ghana

Abstract

Purpose: To explore surgical patients’ perception of spirituality on the outcome of surgeries in the northern part of Ghana. Methods: A qualitative explorative descriptive design was adopted for the study. A purposive sampling technique was used to recruit participants. Data were saturated with 15 participants aged between 23 and 65 years. All the interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. Data analysis was done using the processes of content analysis. Findings: Many participants felt that surgery was a threat to their lives, or felt that they may lose some parts of their body. Participants perceived spirituality (faith) to be a major contributor to their successful surgeries. Participants believed that God’s intervention had led to successful surgery outcomes for their surgeries. However, just a few of the participants stressed that they believed in the competencies of the various health professionals (doctors and nurses) for their successful surgeries. Conclusions: The study showed that surgical patients perceived threat, harm, or loss when they had to undergo surgery. Participants’ perceived that a successful surgical outcome will depend on divine intervention from their religious faith. Hence, nurses must observe patients’ spirituality and respect them during nursing care.