Depression and Spirituality in Australian Aged Care Homes

Abstract

SUMMARY A national survey of Australian aged care homes has found that between 40% and 60% of high care residents and 25% to 51 % of low care residents are depressed, depending on the method used to assess depression. While this survey did not specifically include items on spirituality, an analysis based the Geriatric Depression Scale question “Do you feel that your life is empty?” provides some insights into the type of person who may benefit from spiritual help. The view is expressed that those committed to the provision of spiritual care must be more assertive in making the positive contribution to the reduction in depression that empirical research carried out over the last thirty years suggests is possible. The basic step of identifying those who are ready to talk about spiritual matters and who are depressed is offered as a starting point and some ways of doing this are described.