Effect of an 8-week Heartfulness Meditation Program on Burnout and Stress at Veterinary Specialty Hospital

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Stress; Burnout, Professional
• Interventions: Behavioral: 8-week wellness and relaxation meditation program

• Registration Number: NCT06338098
• Lead Sponsor: Heartfulness Institute

Brief Summary

This quantitative study assesses the effects of meditation and relaxation practices on the reduction of burnout and stress in veterinary care workers. Assessments at baseline will include the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and Maslach Burnout Toolkit, and the same questionnaires were collected in Week 8 and Week 16. The Google form questionnaire will ask the participant for their email address. The form will also include a question eliciting interest in participation in the 8-weeks Heartfulness Meditation program. The program will include tools that promote a heart-based nurturing environment focusing on relaxation, and tools to cope with burnout.

Detailed Description

The purpose of this research is to investigate the effects of meditation and relaxation practices on the reduction of burnout and stress in veterinary care workers.

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2023-02-28
• Primary Completion: 2023-10-02
• Study Completion: 2023-10-02
• Study First Submitted: 2024-03-23
• Study First Submitted QC: 2024-03-23
• Study First Posted: 2024-03-29
• Status Verified: 2024-04
• Last Update Submitted: 2024-04-01
• Last Update Posted: 2024-04-02

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 74

Inclusion Criteria

• Above the age of 18 years
• An employee of MSPCA-Angell Hospital

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Exclusion Criteria

• Experience suicidal ideation
• Diagnosed with manic-depressive disorders
• Diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Diagnosed with psychotic disorders, or any other psychiatric conditions requiring treatment

All eligible members are encouraged to check with their healthcare provider before participation.

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Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Heartfulness Group	8-week wellness and relaxation meditation program	Participants in the meditation program will be provided with guided meditation and relaxation audio clips to spend approximately 20 minutes per day on the meditation and relaxation activities and participate each week in a 20-30 minutes online meditation webinar with a certified meditation trainer. All meditation and relaxation exercises can be performed in the comfort of your own home or other place of your choosing. The intervention will be entirely online.

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Changes level of Burnout	Week 8 and Week 16	To assess the beneficial impact of Heartfulness program on improving burnout levels through Maslach Burnout Toolkit Scale which included Maslach Burnout Inventory for healthcare professionals (MBI-HSS) and Areas of Worklife (AWS). The MBI-HSS comprised 22 questions across 3 subscales; Emotional Exhaustion (EE)-9 questions, Depersonalization (DP)-5 questions, and self-perceived lack of Personal Accomplishment (PA)-8 questions. Responses were scored on a six-point Likert scale (ranging from 0 = never to 6 = everyday) for each subscale, and tabulated into three tiers (low, moderate or high) based on the reference ranges provided with the MBI-HSS. The higher the score the worse the burnout levels. The AWS is a 28 item questionnaire subdivided into six areas with a response scale of 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 5 (Strongly Agree). Higher the score in a sub-area shows a better area in work life.
Changes level of Stress	Week 8 and Week 16	To assess the beneficial impact of Heartfulness program on lowering the Stress. Individual scores on the PSS can range from 0 to 40 with higher scores indicating higher perceived stress.
Assess the current level of Burnout	Week 0	To assess the current level of burnout levels through Maslach Burnout Toolkit Scale which included Maslach Burnout Inventory for healthcare professionals (MBI-HSS) and Areas of Worklife (AWS). The MBI-HSS comprised 22 questions across 3 subscales; Emotional Exhaustion (EE)-9 questions, Depersonalization (DP)-5 questions, and self-perceived lack of Personal Accomplishment (PA)-8 questions. Responses were scored on a six-point Likert scale (ranging from 0 = never to 6 = everyday) for each subscale, and tabulated into three tiers (low, moderate or high) based on the reference ranges provided with the MBI-HSS. The higher the score the worse the burnout levels. The AWS is a 28 item questionnaire subdivided into six areas with a response scale of 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 5 (Strongly Agree). Higher the score in a sub-area shows a better area in work life.
Assess the current level of Anxiety	Week 0	To assess the current level of stress levels through Perceived Stress Scale. Individual scores on the PSS can range from 0 to 40 with higher scores indicating higher perceived stress.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Angell Animal Medical Center,; 🇺🇸 Boston, Massachusetts, United States