”Det pratas inte om religion” : En kvalitativ intervjustudie bland sjukvårdspersonal om bemötandet av religiösmångfald inom den svenska sjukvården

Sammanfattning: The increasing religious diversity in Sweden suggests that healthcare professionalsincreasingly encounter a variety of religious perspectives in their work. Previous researchindicates that incorporating religious aspects in healthcare can enhance the well-being ofindividuals in elder and psychiatric care. This study aims to investigate how Swedish healthcareprofessionals address religious diversity while providing healthcare services. While previousresearch has predominantly focused on the patient’s perspective of religion, this study focuseson the healthcare professionals’ experiences and positions taken regarding religious diversity.The data for this study consists of semi-structured interviews with five nurses and assistantnurses within psychiatric care and five nursing assistants providing elderly care services.This study employs Madeleine Leininger’s theory of culture care diversity and universality,originally developed in the United States, to provide guidance to healthcare professionalsdealing with cultural diversity. Religion, a key cultural aspect in the theory is centrally exploredin this study. The four main tenets of the theory are examined and their applicability within aSwedish context is examined.The result of this study shows that patients within both elderly and psychiatric care request thatthe care they receive be adjusted according to their religious believes. The study also showsthat patients frequently request for the possibility of practicing religion when in need ofhealthcare. The participants of this study agree that religious adjusted care and religiouspractices have a positive impact on the patient’s health. They also clarify that one of the reasonsthis is not applied on a large scale is the lack of religious knowledge among the professionals.All ten participants in this study have also stated that there are no models or techniques (as faras they know) for treating religious diversity in their professions