Spirituality is the personal search for meaning and purpose in life which assumes particular relevance in old age. Hospitalization in old age is a period of high anxiety, and spirituality has shown to be a relevant coping strategy. This study compares old people's spirituality at hospital admission and discharge, analysing the influence of socio-demographic variables, pathology and period of hospitalization. The sample comprises 250 participants (≥ 65 years old), 50.4% female. The Scale of Spirituality, a 5-point Likert scale comprising five items, was administered by interview at admission and discharge. Main findings suggest that: i) 57% of participants show similar mean of spirituality when comparing admission and discharge, 22.5% maintain low spirituality and 22.5% maintain high spirituality; ii) 43% reveal alterations in their spirituality, 21.9% show decreasing of spirituality between admission and discharge and 20.8% show increase. Those participants living in couple tend to show increase in their spirituality. Hospitalization may have different impacts in the spirituality of elderly, what should be considered by practitioners when delivering care.
Spirituality; Hospitalization; Aging
