How Do Healthcare Chaplaincy Spiritual Care Interventions Support Adults’ Mental Health by Integrating Health and Social Care?: A Review of Primary Research Studies Published in English 2010–2019

Abstract

There is an international movement towards integrated care. This systematized literature review studied healthcare chaplaincy spiritual care interventions that support adult mental health by integrating health and social care. Seventeen relevant studies were found. One analysed individual and family care in a general hospital. Twelve described one-to-one community-based interventions, of which ten concerned general practice healthcare centres. Four involved groups supporting mental health in hospitals or community-centres. Two studies used qualitative approaches, seven quantitative and eight mixed methods. The quality of evidence for the outcomes of interventions was examined. The review found that studies demonstrated shifts in healthcare professionals’ working practices anticipated by Paterson (2014), from hospital towards community bases, from treatment of individuals towards empowering service users to self-manage their health, and in mental health contexts from treatment of individuals towards care in groups.