Brief Mindfulness Practice Course for Healthcare Providers

Author: Laurie Walker Seidel1, Francis C Dane, Kimberly Ferren Carter
Affiliation: <sup>1</sup> Author Affiliations: Coordinator of Mindfulness Education (Ms Seidel), Roanoke City Public Schools; Nurse Educator (Ms Seidel) and Senior Director of Nursing Research, EBP, &amp; Excellence (Dr Carter), Carilion Clinic; Professor (Dr Dane), Radford University; and Instructor (Ms Seidel) and Professor (Dr Dane), Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, Roanoke; and Adjunct Professor (Dr Carter), Virginia Tech, Blacksburg.
Conference/Journal: J Nurs Adm
Date published: 2021 Jul-Aug 01
Other: Volume ID: 51 , Issue ID: 7-8 , Pages: 395-400 , Special Notes: doi: 10.1097/NNA.0000000000001035. , Word Count: 158


Objective:
The aim of this study was to examine the short-term and sustained effect on well-being, burnout, and mindful awareness of an abbreviated mindfulness practice course designed for nurses and other healthcare professionals.

Background:
Most mindfulness programs are impractical for frontline healthcare providers because of the intensive, off-site initial training and prolonged practice commitment. A psychiatric nurse educator developed a brief training program tailored for healthcare providers.

Methods:
Two institutional review board-approved studies examined the abbreviated mindfulness practice course for healthcare providers: the first, a single-group pretest-posttest design with 25 nursing employees in an academic medical center, and the second, a randomized controlled trial with 83 healthcare professionals.

Results:
Significant improvement in mindful awareness and at least 1 indicator of burnout were demonstrated. Improvements in quality of life were noted with nurses.

Conclusions:
Findings support the short-term and sustained impact of this brief mindfulness curriculum on mindful awareness, quality of life, and aspects of burnout for healthcare professionals.


PMID: 34405978 DOI: 10.1097/NNA.0000000000001035