2．Spiritual Assessment

　I would like to share some ideas about how to start the process of spiritual care.

　If you look at a book explaining nursing diagnoses, you'll find listings of manifestations or characteristics of spiritual and religious distress. Here are some categories^1,2): existential concerns; needing to make peace with others; sensing abandonment or isolation from others; conflicted or challenged beliefs of a spiritual nature; concerns about relating to the divine; despair, hopelessness, sadness, guilt, or anger as a response to such deep inward struggles; and religious issues. These then are the types of phenomenon you may be assessing.