Purpose: This study evaluated the effectiveness of a nursing intervention program to promote cancer pain self-management for outpatients using a non-randomized controlled trial. Methods: An intervention group underwent 3 sessions of the intervention program. The primary outcome measured was pain intensity (Japanese brief pain inventory [BPI-J]), and the secondary outcomes included the influence of pain on daily life, the effectiveness of pain relief treatment (BPI-J), quality of life (12-item short-form health survey [SF-12]), self-efficacy (pain self-efficacy questionnaire [PSEQ]), and psychological stability (hospital anxiety and depression scale [HADS]). Results: The data from 19 participants in the control and 16 in the intervention groups were analyzed. A comparison of changes in pain intensity before and after the study showed no statistically significant differences between the 2 groups. However, there was a statistically significant difference in the SF-12 role physical, with a decrease in the control group and an increase in the intervention group ( P=0.020). Conclusion: The only significant difference in the amount of change was found in the SF-12 role physical, and the intervention effect of this program could not be clarified. The reason for this was that the number of subjects was less than the sample size.

Purpose: The purpose of this research is to examine nursing practices in which nurses experienced a realization of spirituality and their thoughts at that time. Methods: A questionnaire was administered to nurses in four hospitals and one palliative care unit. Results: A total of 835 participants completed the questionnaire. Nearly 20% of nurses reported having spiritual experiences associated with their work, including realizations of the value of human life and patients' strength in facing death or living with illness. In addition, nurses achieved a sense of spirituality through transcendent occurrences related to life and death, such as premonitions. Nurses pondered providing care that transcends both mind and body after encountering difficulty in providing nursing care. Conclusion: Nurses' sensitivity to human life and death and transcendent occurrences may be a reflection of the unique features of Japanese spirituality. In order to enhance Japanese nurses' perceptions of spirituality, it is necessary to offer nursing education in spirituality related to each nurse's own experiences. Palliat Care Res 2011; 6(1): 216-221