The Pastoral Formation Institute is licensed by MFHEA
(Licence #: 2013-FHI-028) as a Further and Higher Educational Institute. The Award in Spiritual Dimension in Elderly Care for General Care Givers is accredited at EQF/MQF Level 4, as Further Education Programme.
Recognizing that spirituality can play a critical role in the older person’s overall well-being, the program integrates spiritual care into the broader context of holistic caregiving. The program in spiritual care for caregivers is designed to equip healthcare support workers, and personal caregivers with the knowledge, skills, and resources needed to address the spiritual needs of the people they care for.
People working with the elderly e.g. carers and general staff with an MQF level 3 qualification or higher.
This course consists of 11 sessions: 10 lectures and an examination session.
Session 1: Defining Spirituality and Spiritual Care in Healthcare – Competencies in Spiritual Care
Spirituality and spiritual care in health are related to how patients and health professionals seek and express meaning, purpose, connection, value, or transcendence in the context of illness and health. There is a growing body of evidence that shows that spirituality is linked with better health outcomes, patient satisfaction, medical decision-making, and quality of life. This session will introduce the various definitions of spirituality and spiritual care together with the multidimensional spiritual field.
Session 2: Interpersonal and Intrapersonal Spirituality
INTRAPERSONAL SPIRITUALITY deals with personal spirituality as to provide spiritual care the healthcare worker must be spiritual him/herself. The student is made aware of the importance of self-reflection and self-awareness to better himself as a person and as a provider of spiritual care. Interpersonal spirituality deals with building a relationship with people through effective communication skills. It refers to a person’s spirituality that acknowledges their unique spiritual and cultural world views evoking feelings of companionship and compassionate care.
Session 3: Spiritual Assessment and Evaluation of Care
In this session the learner is introduced to formal and informal approaches to assess the patients’ spiritual needs, plan for necessary interventions based on the available resources and evaluate whether the patients’ needs were met.
Session 4: Loss, Grief, and Compassion in the Elderly
This session will introduce learners to the inevitable process of grief experienced because of loss and feelings of isolation in the elderly. This will provide learners with an understanding of the grief process described by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross so as to enable health workers to better understand and prevent spiritual distress to the elderly.
Session 5: Spiritual Care in Elderly Rehabilitation
This session will discuss the spiritual needs specifically of the elderly who are in rehabilitation. It focuses on ways how the healthcare worker will find time for the elderly to be creative and better confront his feelings of suffering and solitude.
Session 6: Spiritual Care and Mental Health
This session will inform learners about the various mental health issues the elderly person may encounter and provide skills that may assist the healthcare worker to manage and care for the elderly experiencing mental health issues.
Session 7: Spiritual Care in Dementia
This session will inform learners about dementia in the elderly. Will provide information on how to manage care of the elderly in this situation and equip his family with helping skills to better understand the situation.
Session 8: The Role of Religion in Spiritual Care for the Elderly
This session will focus on religiosity which is integral to spiritual care.
Session 9: The Sacraments in Different Religions and Spirituality
This session will discuss religious practices of various religious denominations present in our society.
Session 10: Case Scenarios in the Spiritual Dimension of Elderly Care
This session will provide different case scenarios to assess and evaluate the learners’ knowledge, skills and attitudes learnt during the program to transfer to when caring for the elderly
The course will be held in the following dates from 9:00am – 11:00am at Dar tal-Kleru, Birkirkara
| Date | Session |
|---|---|
| 6th October 2026 | Interpersonal and intrapersonal spirituality |
| 13th October 2026 | Spiritual assessment and evaluation of care |
| 20th October 2026 | Spiritual care and mental health |
| 27th October 2026 | Spiritual care in the rehabilitation of the elderly |
| 3rd November 2026 | Loss, grief and compassion in the elderly |
| 10th November 2026 | Defining ‘Spirituality’ and ‘Spiritual Care’ in Healthcare Competencies in spiritual care |
| 17th November 2026 | The role of religion in spiritual care for the elderly |
| 24th November 2026 | Spiritual care in dementia |
| 1st December 2026 | The Christian Sacraments and other sacred rites in different religions and spirituality |
| 15th December 2026 | Case scenarios in the Spiritual Dimension of Elderly Care |
| 12th January 2027* | Examination* |
*Examination session will take place from 9:00am – 10:30am
LO1 – Competence
At the end of the module/unit the learners will have acquired the following 4 core competences (EPICC Spiritual Care Education Standard, 2016-2019):
- Intrapersonal and Interpersonal spiritual care competences.
- Assessment and planning for spiritual care.
- Intervention and evaluation of spiritual care.
LO2 – Knowledge
At the end of the module/unit the learner will be able to:
- Demonstrate knowledge of spirituality and spiritual care and its significance in health and well-being.
- Understand different religious and spiritual traditions and their practices.
- Recognise the role of spirituality in coping with illness, suffering, and end-of-life issues.
LO3 – Skill
At the end of the module/unit the learners will have acquired the following skills:
- Develop empathetic listening and communication skills to discuss spiritual concerns.
- Collaborate with nurses, chaplains, clergy, or spiritual leaders when needed.
- Encourage self-care and spiritual well-being among patients and colleagues
This course has one exit certificate option:
Certificate of Achievement
A Certificate of Achievement is awarded to students who successfully concluded the course, that is;
- attend a minimum of 80% of all contact hours
- complete and pass from written examination
Click here to view the PFI’s Grading System
Awarding Body: Pastoral Formation Institute
Minimum Level 3 of education.