Approaching Spiritual and Existential Care Needs in Health Education: Applying SOPHIE (Self-Exploration through Ontological, Phenomenological, and Humanistic, Ideological, and Existential Expressions), as Practice Methodology

Ali, Gulnar; Lalani, Nasreen

doi:10.3390/rel11090451

Open AccessArticle

Approaching Spiritual and Existential Care Needs in Health Education: Applying SOPHIE (Self-Exploration through Ontological, Phenomenological, and Humanistic, Ideological, and Existential Expressions), as Practice Methodology

by

Gulnar Ali

^1,* and

Nasreen Lalani

²

¹

Health and Social Care, University of Wales Trinity Saint David, London SW9 6EJ, UK

²

School of Nursing, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Religions 2020, 11(9), 451; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel11090451

Submission received: 14 July 2020 / Revised: 27 August 2020 / Accepted: 29 August 2020 / Published: 3 September 2020

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Religion, Spirituality and Psychology)

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Abstract

Addressing existential and spiritual care needs, often remains a challenge in health education. Spirituality is a subjective human experience that shapes how individuals make meaning, construct knowledge, develop their own sense of reality, and bring personal and social transformation. To inspire health and social students at a London based University; learners were engaged into philosophical reasonings associated with the meaning to care. SOPHIE (Self-exploration through Ontological, Phenomenological and Humanistic, Ideological, and Existential expressions)—a reflective practice tool was applied during in-class activities from June 2019–2020. Using SOPHIE as a tool, students were encouraged to explore existential and ontological care aspects by engaging into transformative learning approaches. Participants identified their own existential and spiritual care needs by reflecting on their own meaning making process. SOPHIE enabled resilience and authenticity among learners as a reflexive discourse.

Keywords: self-care; authenticity; meaning making; ontology; reflective learning; spirituality and existential health

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MDPI and ACS Style

Ali, G.; Lalani, N. Approaching Spiritual and Existential Care Needs in Health Education: Applying SOPHIE (Self-Exploration through Ontological, Phenomenological, and Humanistic, Ideological, and Existential Expressions), as Practice Methodology. Religions 2020, 11, 451. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel11090451

AMA Style

Ali G, Lalani N. Approaching Spiritual and Existential Care Needs in Health Education: Applying SOPHIE (Self-Exploration through Ontological, Phenomenological, and Humanistic, Ideological, and Existential Expressions), as Practice Methodology. Religions. 2020; 11(9):451. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel11090451

Chicago/Turabian Style

Ali, Gulnar, and Nasreen Lalani. 2020. "Approaching Spiritual and Existential Care Needs in Health Education: Applying SOPHIE (Self-Exploration through Ontological, Phenomenological, and Humanistic, Ideological, and Existential Expressions), as Practice Methodology" Religions 11, no. 9: 451. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel11090451

APA Style

Ali, G., & Lalani, N. (2020). Approaching Spiritual and Existential Care Needs in Health Education: Applying SOPHIE (Self-Exploration through Ontological, Phenomenological, and Humanistic, Ideological, and Existential Expressions), as Practice Methodology. Religions, 11(9), 451. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel11090451

Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.

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Approaching Spiritual and Existential Care Needs in Health Education: Applying SOPHIE (Self-Exploration through Ontological, Phenomenological, and Humanistic, Ideological, and Existential Expressions), as Practice Methodology

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