The use of spirituality by African Americans with end stage renal disease

This qualitative study incorporated a semi-structured intensive interview process to explore the meaning of spirituality in the lived experiences of 12 African American End Stage Renal Disease patients receiving hemodialysis. The study utilized a phenomenological methodology. Three overarching themes emerged from the data analysis. They were: (1) Faith that God Cares, which emanated from the belief that God or the Divine would bring them through whatever challenge they faced; (2) Finding Meaning in Ailment and Pain, which seemed to have a spiritually transformative impact resulting in the emergence of both an altruistic self and a selfaffirmed self; and (3) The significance of concrete support by family, which included housing and personal care underscored through prayers offered by friends and others. The findings of this study point to the identification and use of spiritual assessment tools as a guide for clinical social work practice. Spiritual assessments may help identify the strengths of spirituality in the development of positive coping skills in patients diagnosed with chronic or end stage illness within populations for whom spirituality may be significant