Do Prayer and Medicine Mix?

On June 10, 2008, the Washington Post published an article about faith and medicine (Doctors Can Be Doubters).

In the article, Dr. Manoj Jain discusses his own thoughts and experiences in trying to find a balance in combining spirituality and the practice of medicine. He also shares observations of what he has seen other doctors doing.

The issue that caught my attention was the notion of how to interact with patients with regard to religion or spirituality, especially if the doctor and the patient are not followers of the same religion. Of particular note, Dr. Jain mentions observing another physician praying with a patient before surgery and asking him whether he changes this practice for patients who are not Christian. Dr. Jain seemed to think that this doctor might only pray with patients that shared his religious beliefs. He noted that "Although studies show that 40 to 60 percent of hospitalized patients want their doctors to pray with them, fewer than 5 percent of doctors say they often or usually pray with patients."

This raises an ethical dilemma. Are all patients receiving the same treatment? Should prayer and meditation be integrated into medical practice? If so, shouldn't all patients be entitled to this type of attention from their doctor regardless of their religion? What if a research study showed that patients whose surgeons prayed with them before surgery had better outcomes? Would this become standard of care? Who would decide on the content of the prayer?