Although physical assessment, lab tests and scans may provide some objective measurements, there s more to the picture.
Most nurses instinctively know that health encompasses more than purely physical qualities.
The psychological and spiritual dimensions also weigh heavily upon the healing process. Yet, a recent article in The New England Journal of Medicine questions the ethics of spiritual care. In the article Richard P. Sloan, et al, argue first that the research on the relationship between religion and health is inconclusive. They have a good point. We have to ask if that research even is appropriate.