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Brief Mindfulness Practices for Healthcare Providers - a Systematic Literature Review.
Am J Med. 2017 Jul 04;:
Authors: Gilmartin H, Goyal A, Hamati MC, Mann J, Saint S, Chopra V
Abstract
Mindfulness practice, where an individual maintains openness, patience, and acceptance, while focusing attention on a situation in a non-judgmental way, can improve symptoms of anxiety, burnout, and depression. The practice is relevant for healthcare providers; however, the time commitment is a barrier to practice. For this reason, brief mindfulness interventions (e.g. ≤ four hours) are being introduced. We systematically reviewed the literature from inception to January 2017 regarding the effects of brief mindfulness interventions on provider well-being and behavior. Studies that tested a brief mindfulness intervention with hospital providers and measured change in well-being (e.g., stress) or behavior (e.g., tasks of attention or reduction of clinical or diagnostic errors) were selected for narrative synthesis. Fourteen studies met inclusion criteria; seven were randomized controlled trials. Nine of 14 studies reported positive changes in levels of stress, anxiety, mindfulness, resiliency, and burnout symptoms. No studies found an effect on provider behavior. Brief mindfulness interventions may be effective in improving provider well-being, however larger studies are needed to assess an impact on clinical care.
PMID: 28687263 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]