Reducing Burnout in Bedside Nurses Through Guided Meditation

Purpose & Background: Nurses regularly have encounters with traumatic and stressful events which can have deleterious effects on their physical and psychological well-being and lead to burnout. The Covid-19 pandemic has further exacerbated the stress on nurses. The purpose of this project is to evaluate if an evidence-based, guided mindfulness-based intervention would reduce burnout levels among registered nurses (RNs) working in in-patient settings. Methods: Participants enrolled in nursing programs from a local university were recruited for the project with the following inclusion requirements: (1) RNs working in an in-patient setting, (2) aged 18 years old or older; (3) fluent in the English language. Participants completed a pre-survey and then enrolled in a free mindfulness application via their phone or computer. Participants listened to one ten-minute mindfulness session for a consecutive ten days and then completed a post-survey. Results: Data collected from the pre and post surveys included the use of the following valid and reliable instrument tools: Copenhagen Burnout Inventory, Brief Resiliency Coping Scale, and Short Form Health Survey. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and the Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test. The analyzed data showed that there was statistical significance in decreased burnout levels, increased resiliency, and increased health perceptions of the participants. Conclusion: By finding ways to cope with the experience of burnout in nurses, nurses’ mental health wellness can improve in order for nurses to continue to be an integral part of the healthcare system.