Spirituality in African-American Mothers Coping with a Seriously Ill Infant

Issues And Purpose: To describe how African-American mothers' spirituality helped them cope during the time of their infants' hospitalization for a serious illness.

Design And Methods: Fourteen mothers whose infants were seriously ill in the early months of life were interviewed for this retrospective, descriptive study.

Results: The core theme related to prayer. Four mothers reported a strengthened faith, while two mothers continued to have difficulty relating to God or attending church.

Practice Implications: These findings support the importance of understanding and respecting the spiritual needs and expressions of spirituality in African-American mothers who are coping with a serious illness in one of their children.