Validation of the spiritual screening tool ConnecTo

ABSTRACT

Understanding more about an older person’s spirituality is important when they begin engagement with organizations providing care. This research sought to determine the validity of the ConnecTo spirituality screening tool. This tool enables care providers to gain some understanding of the spirituality of older people entering residential aged care or receiving a home care package. A mixed-methods, triangulated approach was used in determining that the tool is valid. This included an analysis of both the quantitative and the qualitative data associated with the screening process. Some 56 older people and 15 interviewers participated in the research.

KEYWORDS:

• Aging
• Caregiver
• Quality of life
• Spirituality
• Tool use behavior

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to acknowledge the excellent cooperation extended by the organisations and aged care providers whose clients or residents participated in the project. Of specific mention are the 15 spiritual carers who interviewed the participants. They overcame the many obstacles of floods, bushfires and the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure they had time to further the challenges of assisting in the spiritual development of the people in their care.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Ethics approval

Ethics approval for this study was provided by the University of Southern Queensland. Reference No. H20REA215, approved on 26 February, 2020.

Additional information

Funding

This project received no direct funding from any organisation.