Nurses' experiences of the emotional and spiritual dimension in pediatric oncology

Objective: To describe nurses' experiences of the emotional and spiritual dimension in pediatric oncology. Methods: Qualitative descriptive study. Twelve nurses working in a level III hospital in Chiclayo, Peru participated. A semi-structured interview guide was used for data collection. Data were processed and analyzed using the thematic content analysis method. Results: Three categories emerged: (a) Nursing feelings and emotional management of perceived suffering, (b) Care in the emotional dimension based on empathy, and (c) Care in the spiritual dimension based on respect for religious beliefs. Conclusions: Pediatric oncology nurses experience an emotional bond with the oncologic child and his or her family caregiver, facing a high emotional impact in these contexts of suffering, bereavement and death. Nevertheless, they provide emotional support based on empathy, closeness and respect. In addition, they highlight the relevance of spiritual resources in their practice, such as faith and prayer. In this way, they are not only restricted to biolog-ical care, but also to emotional and spiritual care, which turns out to be more trans-cendent.