Building a Healing Hospital
By, Kathleen Cosato
March 15, 2015
Grand Canyon University, HLT 310-V
Professor Alicia Plant

Throughout history, spirituality has been a foundation for healing. Even during Jesus’ time, people would come to him to be a part of his healing powers. A lot of Eastern medicine still uses spirituality as the foundation for their beliefs. However, over the past century, western medicine has slowly replaced spirituality with science and technology in their health care system. While this is successful and a necessary part of evolutionary medicine, some people may argue that when spirituality is at the core of the healing process, there is even greater prosperity and restoration. Throughout this essay, the author will describe the benefits of a healing hospital, while depicting the challenges that an institution might face when deciding to incorporate spirituality into their healing process.
SPIRITUALITY AND COMPNENTS OF A HEALING HOSPITAL Spirituality is a broad concept that describes a connection to something bigger than ourselves (Pulchaski, 2014). Many people find their spiritual life to be connected to a church, temple or some other religious institution, while some may feel connected to their higher being through prayer and strengthening a personal relationship with God. Most people rely on their spirituality to fulfill a purpose or meaning in their life. Healing means to make whole, as in body, mind and spirit (Zborowski & Kreitzer, 2008). Healing is different from curing, because curing is about fixing a problem or relieving symptoms, while healing is about restoring a person’s well-being. Someone can be healed without being cured, if they learn how to be at peace despite their condition. Creating a healing environment can have numerous benefits for patients. In order to promote a healing environment, there are physical components that much be acknowledged. A peaceful, quiet setting allows patients to meditate or focus on their own mending. Some examples include carpets that reduce noise in the hallways, eliminating overhead speakers, limiting the amount of noise that comes from machines or speaking in a calm tone. Incorporating these modifications alone has been shown to reduce blood pressure, heart rate and tension (Zborowski & Kreitzer, 2008). Also, when working with a patient through a healing hospital, it is important to give the patient a sense of control and autonomy. Allowing the patient to participate in their care will ease anxiety and worry about the unexpected. A healing hospital or environment should also provide the patient access to social services and support programs. In addition to this, providing a comfortable and welcoming space for the patient’s family to congregate will encourage calmness in the patient. Having family and friends has been shown numerous times to increase strength and positivity. Finally, ensuring the patient’s privacy and security will alleviate any jitters and concern that patients have while in the hospital (Zborowski & Kreitzer, 2008).
CHALLENGES OF A HEALING HOSPITAL
The process of facilitating a healing hospital can be challenging. One of the first challenges that a hospital may encounter is equipping themselves with a staff that is all in acceptance of the idea of a healing hospital. Gathering a team who all embrace this philosophy can be difficult, because it would require each individual to give more of them to create this atmosphere. A healing hospital is centered on a holistic approach, so the medical team would need to have the ability to treat