A Mindfulness-Based Intervention for Acute Care Nursing Staff: A Pilot Study.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine if a mindfulness-based smartphone application, used for 5 minutes a day for 30 days, could address burnout among acute care nursing staff. Methods: A pretest-posttest design with a midpoint evaluation was utilized. The sample included 31 nursing staff from cardiovascular acute care units. The Copenhagen Burnout Inventory, Cognitive and Affective Mindfulness Scale-Revised, Perceived Stress Scale, and Brief Resilience Scale were used to measure the impact of the intervention on participants. Findings: In a repeated measures analysis, there were no statistically significant changes in scores on the Brief Resilience Scale across the three timeframes ( F  = 0.64, df  = 1.42, p  = .49). There were significant reductions over time for perceived stress ( F  = 10.56, df  = 1.74, p  = .002) and personal burnout ( F  = 11.8, df  = 1.10, p  = .007), and increased scores on mindfulness ( F  = 4.76, df  = 1.57, p  = .039). Conclusions: The utilization of a mindfulness-based smartphone application may promote the health and well-being of cardiovascular nurses in acute care units. Mindfulness-based smartphone apps should be considered as a method of self-care, along with other holistic approaches to improve well-being.