本研究採用詮釋學方法以探討末期病患的靈性本質。採用深度訪談在6個月的時間收集了6位樣本。研究者是一家教學醫院的安寧療護顧問，因此在其安寧病房中可以直接照顧病人。6位樣本是用立意選樣選出不同背景者。訪談資料寫成文字稿以作為分析之用。研究結果包含4個類別模型及10個主題。第1個類別模型為「與自己共融」，共含3個主題為：（1）自我認同－靈性就是發現真正的自我。（2）完整的自我－人雖充滿矛盾但可仍不失其完整性。（3）內在平安－靈性就是通過衝突以達自我和解。第2個類別模型為「與他人共融」，共含2個主題：（1）愛－靈性就是與他人關懷的關係但又不至太過依附。（2）和解－靈性就是對他人的寬恕與被寬恕。第3個類別模型為「與大自然的共融」，共含2個主題：（1）從大自然而來的靈感－靈性就是對大自然珍奇的美好產生共鳴。（2）創造力－靈性就是無限想像之創造力。第4個類別模型為「與至高者共融」，共含3個主題：（1）信仰－靈性就是完全的信賴。（2）希望－靈性就是相信一切的可能性。（3）感恩－靈性就是懷抱慈悲，時時感恩。在討論中報告了本研究如何運用科學的嚴謹性，本研究之長處及限制。同時提出對安寧緩和醫療的未來研究之建議。

　　　　　The purpose of this hermeneutic study was to investigate the essence of spirituality of terminally ill patients. In-depth unstructured interviews were used as the method for data collection. In the six-month period of data collection, the researcher was in the role of a hospice palliative care consultant who directly took care of the subject patients in a hospice ward of a teaching hospital. The six subjects were selected purposively according to various demographic backgrounds. Interview transcripts provided the data for analysis. The results were composed of four constitutive patterns and ten themes. The first constitutive pattern was