Meaningful Mindfulness - Self Care of Clinical Staff

Healthcare can be a demanding field, and working on a rehabilitation unit can be both physically and emotionally challenging. Self care practices are important and clinical staff must be educated on the tools in order to reduce perceived levels of stress in the workplace. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a stretching program as compared to a guided meditation intervention. This research is based on the theoretical framework of Jean Watson that focuses on the necessity of healing potential for both – the one who is caring and the one who is cared for because only by caring for ourselves, will we be able to care for others (Wagner, Watson & Cara, 2020). This topic is worthy of research because there are many studies that look at stretching and meditation as separate entities, however, there are no studies that specifically compare the two. This study has the potential to impact an individual’s stress management skills and the promotion of healthy self-care practices.

Furthermore increasing team engagement and the care givers ability to interact with patients and coworkers effectively. This in turn provides a positive workplace environment ultimately leading to positive patient experience. For this study, clinical staff on an 24 bed- inpatient rehabilitation unit will participate in a 12 week intervention program. Clinical staff (RNs, NAs, PTs, OTs, NUCs) will be divided into two interventional groups: stretching and meditation. The stretching group is educated on 10 stretching exercises targeting a variety of muscles. The meditation group is given options on an iPAD for practicing timed guided meditation. Each group is expected to perform the intervention during the work day with the hopes of continued sustainability after the research project is completed.

The outcome measured is perceived level of stress via pre-post test. Data collected will be analyzed using an independent t-test. After completion of the research project, plans are to incorporate continued stress reduction interventions for both mind and body for all clinical staff. Furthermore, caregivers can promote patient self care as a result of their education in effective self care practices.

Learning Objectives:

• Develop a research program from PICO through sustaining innovative outcomes from data.
• Teach clinical staff how to integrate self care practices for stress reduction and wellness.
• Develop staff to integrate self care concepts into professional domain for personal growth .