Positive religious people 3 times more likely to postpone death

William Atkins
Wednesday, 18 March 2009 20:23

Science - Health

Two-hundred seventy two (272) patients (78.8%) stated that their religion helps them cope "to a moderate extent" or more. Another 31.6% (109 patients) said that religion "… is the most important thing that keeps you going."

In addition, 55.9% of the patients regularly prayed, meditated, or had religious study on a daily basis.

The researchers found, according to their abstract, that “A high level of positive religious coping at baseline was significantly associated with receipt of mechanical ventilation compared with patients with a low level.”

In fact, if a patient was found to have positive religious coping, they were 11.3% likely to use intensive life-prolonging care during the last week of life.

If they were found to have negative religious coping, they were only 3.6% likely to use intensive life-prolonging care during this time--which is actually 3.14 times less likely than the positive religious people.

They concluded, “Positive religious coping in patients with advanced cancer is associated with receipt of intensive life-prolonging medical care near death. Further research is needed to determine the mechanisms for this association.”

For further information on the study, please go to the e! Science News website “Use of religious coping associated with receiving intensive medical care near death.”

The article concluded by saying, "Taken together, these results highlight the need for clinicians to recognize and be sensitive to the influence of religious coping on medical decisions and goals of care at the end of life. When appropriate, clinicians might include chaplains or other trained professionals (e.g., liaison psychiatrists) to inquire about religious coping during family meetings while the patient is in an intensive care unit and end-of-life discussions occurring earlier in the disease course.”

And, “Because aggressive end-of-life cancer care has been associated with poor quality of death and caregiver bereavement adjustment, intensive end-of-life care might represent a negative outcome for religious copers. These findings merit further discussion within religious communities, and consideration from those providing pastoral counsel to terminally ill patients with cancer."