Effects of mindfulness training for healthcare staff during COVID-19 outbreak for the cultivation of resilience and compassion

Abstract

Introduction: In working to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare staff face difficult challenges that could impact their physical and psychological well-being. Reports from the 2003 SARS outbreak in Hong Kong showed that medical professionals experienced heightened anxiety levels. In the present study, a brief mindfulness training program was introduced to healthcare staff in Hong Kong to examine the impact on their psychological well-being. The teaching and practices offered in the program aimed to help them manage stress and cultivate resilience. Research Design: The study was conducted between June and August 2020, between the second and third waves of local COVID-19 outbreak. Thirty healthcare staff from local medical centres attended a brief mindfulness training program consisting of four weekly 2-hour sessions. A self-report questionnaire was administered before and after the training program, and one month after program completion, to measure changes in perceived stress, self-efficacy, general health, and self-compassion. Results: Improvement in psychological well-being was found one month after completion of training. Comparisons between follow-up and baseline measures showed a significant decrease in General Health Questionnaire scores (t(29)=- 2.917, p=.007), indicating an improvement in psychological state. Furthermore, an improvement in Self-Compassion was found (t(29)=3.848, p=.001). There was a significant increase in self-soothing thoughts (self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness; t(29)=3.456, p=.002), and decrease in self-defeating thoughts (self-judgment, isolation, and over-identification; t(29)=-3.066, p=.005). However, there was also a significant increase in perceived stress (t(29)=2.252, p=.032), and no significant changes in self-efficacy. Conclusions: The mindfulness intervention was effective in enhancing general health and self-compassion in participants. The data suggests that despite the increase in perceived stress, which can possibly be explained by the uncertainties of local COVID-19 outbreak during the follow-up, participants could still maintain the increase in general health and self-compassion one month after training. Overall, this study demonstrated the positive effects of introducing mindfulness practice to healthcare staff during the pandemic as a prevention measure against the residual negative impact on their mental health. Further research with a control group and a larger sample are necessary to confirm these findings.