NCCAM considers prayer a mind-body intervention since this practice often occurs in deep stillness as a means to facilitate reflection and healing in oneself or someone else. It is viewed as a therapeutic approach due to the foundation of scientific research on spirituality and health showing the health benefits of prayer (see below).
Inclusion of prayer as a MBT in treatment planning has a variety of professional implications.
What are your thoughts about using prayer as a prescriptive intervention?
There are many resources available to help you think through how to talk about or include prayer as a treatment option. You can print the below list of journal articles and websites to help you get started.
Scientific Research on Spirituality and Health
There are many scientifc studies and books that document the relationship of spirituality and health. For a general overview of research in this area, examine the following book:
Jeff Levin, Ph.D: God, Faith, and Health: Exploring the Spirituality- Healing Connection. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2001.
A solid evidence-based review article to read is:
Thoresen CE, Harris AH. Spirituality and health: what's the evidence and what's needed? Annals of Behavioral Medicine. Winter 2002;24(1):3-13.
Readings Related to the Role of Spirituality and Prayer
Journal Articles
Daaleman TP. Religion, spirituality, and the practice of medicine. J Am Board Fam Med 17: 370-376. 2004.
Anandarajah G, Hight E. Spirituality and medical practice: Using the HOPE questions as a practical tool for spiritual assessment. Amer Fami Physician 63: 81-8. 2001.
McCord G, Gilchrist VJ, Grossman SD, King BD, McCormick KF, Oprandi AM, Schrop SL, Selius BA, Smucker WD, Weldy DL, Amorn M, Carter MA, Deak AJ, Hefzy H, Srivastava M. Discussing spirituality with patients: A rational and ethical approach. Ann Fam Med 2: 356-36. 2004.
Monroe MH, Bynum D, Susi B, Phifer N, Schultz L, Franco M, MacLean CD, Cykert S, Garrett J. Primary care physician preferences regarding spiritual behavior in medical practice. Arch Intern Med 163: 2751-2756. 2003.
Post SG, Puchalski CM, Larson D. Physicians and patient spirituality: Professional boundaries, competency, and ethics. Annals Inter Med 132(7): 578-583. 2000.
Websites
The George Washington Institute for Spirituality and Health: http://www.gwish.org/
The Duke Center for Spirituality, Theology and Health: http://www.dukespiritualityandhealth.org/sth/