This article offers a status questionis on the domaine of spiritual care and especially on the way the spiritual dimension is included in general care. The author chose some topics which often appear in medical and nursing literature as: the difficulty to find a common definition of spiritual care, the areas of research on this topic, the spiritual assessment of the patient. In the second part of the article the author offers a more personal reflection arising from her practice as chaplain in a large hospital. For example, she points to the need for caregivers to let go of their desires for control, to let themselves be surprised and even in awe in front of the mysteries and beauties of life.