N18 Exploring the spiritual needs of patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease and their caregivers: A protocol for a European cross-sectional nursing study
Authors: Martinato RN PhD M , Monaco E , Iervolino C , Büssing A , Comoretto R I , Gregori D 
Published: January 2025

Background

Despite the recognized importance of holistic care, including addressing spirituality, limited research has focused on the existential/spiritual needs of patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) and their caregivers [1].

Understanding these needs is crucial for enhancing patient-centred care and to initiate appropriate support planning processes [2].

This study aims to assess the spiritual needs among European IBD patients and their caregivers while exploring associations with socio-demographic and clinical variables.

Methods

A European-wide cross-sectional study, initiated by a pilot study in Italy, will be conducted.

The first phase of the pilot study is a 6-step translation, adaptation, and validation of the extended version of the Spiritual Needs Questionnaire (SpNQ-EV) and the Interpretation of Illness Questionnaire (IIQ) adopting the methodology [3] described in Figure 1.

To confirm the validity of the translations and to ensure they are user-friendly, the Thinking Out Loud (TOL) technique (think-aloud method) will pre-test their self-administration via a web-based platform and provide fine-tuning of the study's secondary objectives.

TOL involves participants verbalizing their thoughts while completing the questionnaires, allowing to capture real-time insights into their understanding, interpretation, and potential challenges with questionnaire items in the respective cultural contexts.

The second phase will consist of an anonymous e-survey of the six questionnaires described in Table 1 including the translated and validated SPNQ-EV and IIQ developed in Phase 1.

The European study will employ a multilingual anonymous e-survey to ensure accessibility in participants' native languages, eventually preceded by country-based pilot studies.

Eligible participants include adolescents and adults with IBD and their caregivers, recruited via nurses and patient associations.

Results

This project is supported by a N-ECCO grant [4] and complies with the ethical standards of the Declaration of Helsinki. An independent ethics committee opinion has been sought. The study has been registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT number assignment pending). The Italian translation and validation of both questionnaires have been performed. Their detailed results are described in separate abstracts submitted to the 20th ECCO Congress.

Conclusion

This study will provide critical insights into the existential/spiritual needs of IBD patients and their caregivers, highlighting the importance of integrating spiritual care into holistic nursing practice. Findings will support the development of tailored interventions, such as screening tools and training programs, enabling healthcare professionals to better address spiritual needs across diverse care settings.

References

[1]Starnella G, Rosato I, Canova C, et al. N47 Spiritual needs of patients with IBD: preliminary results of a pilot study. J Crohns Colitis. 2024;18(Supplement_1):i2256. doi:10.1093/ecco-jcc/jjad212.1419

[2]Büssing A. The Spiritual Needs Questionnaire in Research and Clinical Application: a Summary of Findings. J Relig Health. 2021;60(5):3732-3748. doi:10.1007/s10943-021-01421-4

[3]Martinato M, Ranzato C, Faggian E, et al. Knowledge assessment among subjects with chronic venous leg ulcer in outpatient setting: Translation and adaptation of a tool to identify subjects at risk of poor understanding. Wound Repair Regen. 2023;31(5):679-687. doi:10.1111/wrr.13107

[4]Martinato M. N-ECCO Grant Spiritual needs of patients with inflammatory bowel disease and their caregivers: a European cross-sectional nursing study. J Crohns Colitis. 2024;18(Supplement_1):i2274. doi:10.1093/ecco-jcc/jjad212.1437