Table 2 Elective course characteristics
From: Spirituality and health in the curricula of medical schools in Brazil
Course name | Main topic | Public or Private | Objectives | Issues | Learning methodology | Hands-on training | Teach spiritual history |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Medicine and Spirituality -Elective 60 h | Spirituality | Public | (a) Know the current state of the art of medicine and spirituality supported by scientific literature indexed; (b) know practical notions of patients’ management according to the integrative bio-psycho-socio-spiritual integrative model; (c) Personal and technical preparation in medicine and spirituality; (d) Ethical and legal principles; (e) Dealing with cultural and religious pluralism; (f) Compassion, love and medicine; (g) The limits of medicine | Not available | Theoretical classes and hands-on training. Patients visits. | Yes | Yes |
Spirituality and Medicine -Elective 32 h | Spirituality | Public | (a)Realize the importance of spirituality as a factor that can impact patient's health; (b) Importance of spirituality in humanization of care | (a)Concepts of Spirituality and Religiosity; (b)Why should we study Spirituality in patient care?; (c) Reflecting on the existence of God and understanding different religions; (d) Pain and suffering in a transcendent view of human beings; (e) Spirituality in health and disease; (f) The mystery of faith; (g) Why? When? and How to include spirituality in patient care?; (h) How to address Spirituality in the hospital clinical practice; (i) The spiritual formation of the professional: a necessity or just a personal choice?; (j) Spirituality as an instrument of humanized care; (k) Research in spirituality and health: perspective of science | Lectures, group discussions, and reading supplementary texts | No | Yes |
Medicine and Spirituality -Elective 20 h | Spirituality | Public | (a)Understand the human being as a spiritual being; (b) know the foundations of spirituality paradigm in medicine; (c) Be familiar with concepts of care, health and disease from the perspective of spirituality; (d) know the main lines of research in the area of spirituality and health; (e) Be familiar with the concepts in thanatology, spirituality, near-death experiences and end of life issues; (f) Encourage the doctor to form their own values concerning spirituality in health | (a) Reflection on the Myth of the Cave (Plato); (b) Studies regarding Near-Death Experiences; (c) Documentary “Life after Life” (Raymond Moody); (d) The Quantum Physics Paradigm; (e) Ethical issues and Spirituality; (f) Thanatology from a transpersonal psychology perspective | Lectures, group discussions, movies, reading supplementary texts, meditation, music therapy and shared experiences | No | No |
Spirituality and health -Elective | Spirituality | Public | (a)Distinguish what spirituality, religiosity and religion are; (b) Understand, based on historical and scientific data, the role spirituality plays in the disease process, treatment, evolution, and prognosis; (c) Understand spirituality as an instrument of humanization of health care; (d) Understand the implications of spirituality in educational practice | (a)Religious life and social organization; (b) The meaning of spirituality in coping with the existential crisis brought on by illness; (c) Epidemiology of religiousness and religions; (c) Spirituality and health: a report from a visiting professor; (d) Spirituality as an instrument of humanization of health care; (e) Spirituality in educational practice; (f) Religion as a coping adaptation process into diseases; (g) Spirituality within popular education in health; (h) Implications of Spirituality in medical training | Reading supplementary texts and articles, group discussions and team work, discussion with visiting professors | No | No |
Medicine, spirituality and health -Elective 30 h | Spirituality | Public | (a)Comprehensively integrate medical expertise with spiritual philosophy knowledge from different religions; (b) Expand medical teaching through religious concepts and their relation with health care | (a)Medicine, Health and Spirituality; (b) Ethical aspects in clinical practice; (c)Kirlian Photography; (d) Multidimensional anatomy and physiology; (e) New paradigms: Newtonian versus quantum physics; (f) Vibrational energies and their influence on health; (g) The concept of God; (h) Cell biology, Genetics and Spirituality; (i)Hands-on training (visiting the hospital wards); (j) Ayurvedic medicine: human consciousness and spiritual health; (k) Mind: a spiritual instrument; (l) Prayer and meditation on health; (m) Chakras: Endocrine Relations; (n) Homeopathy; (o) Humanization of medicine; (p) Hypnosis - Altered state of consciousness; (q) Conscientiology; (r) Thanatology | Lectures, seminars, group discussions, movies, questionnaire evaluations | Yes | Yes |