Effects of mindfulness‐based interventions on reducing psychological distress among nurses: A systematic review and meta‐analysis of randomized controlled trials
Abstract
Purpose: Nurses increasingly use mindfulness as an effective mental health intervention to reduce psychological distress. The effectiveness of mindfulness‐based interventions remains inconclusive, which may lead to implementation of interventions in an inefficient or ineffective manner. This study aimed to examine the effects of mindfulness‐based interventions on reducing stress, anxiety, and depression among nurses. Design: Systematic review and meta‐analysis. Methods: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were searched using six databases published through May 20, 2023, which evaluated the effects of mindfulness‐based interventions on reducing psychological distress among nurses. To assess the quality of methodology included in the RCTs, version 2 of the Cochrane risk‐of‐bias instrument for RCTs with five domains was used. Standardized mean difference (SMD) with 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated using the random–effects model in the meta‐analyses. Publication bias was assessed using Egger's regression test. Further, the robustness effect size of the pooled analysis was assessed using leave‐one‐out sensitivity analysis. Findings: A total of 16 RCTs were included in the final analysis. Overall, the modalities appeared to alleviate stress (pooled SMD: −0.50 [95% CI: −0.82 to −0.18]; p < 0.001) and depression (pooled SMD: −0.42 [95% CI: −0.78 to −0.06]; p = 0.02) among nurses. Conclusion: Mindfulness‐based interventions appear to alleviate stress and depression in nurses. Future research evaluating mindfulness‐based interventions among working nurses with more rigorous methodological and larger sample size. Clinical Relevance: Support for nurses' mental health must be included while implementing personal and professional development plans.
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Third-wave psychotherapies, including mindfulness-based interventions, compassion-based programs, and acceptance and commitment therapy, are effective in reducing occupational stress, anxiety, and depression while increasing resilience, including in health professionals.
“Different systematic reviews have underscored the effectiveness of third-wave psychotherapies, including mindfulness-based interventions, compassion-based programs, and acceptance and commitment therapy, in reducing occupational stress as well as anxiety and depression while increasing resilience, including in health professionals [18-21].”
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López-del-Hoyo, Y., Fernández-Martínez, S., Perez-Aranda, A., Monreal-Bartolomé, A., Barceló-Soler, A., Camarero-Grados, L., Armas-Landaeta, C., Guzmán-Parra, J., Carbonell, V., Campos, D., et al. (2025) · Journal of Medical Internet Research · doi:10.2196/59653 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
- Authors
- Karo, M., Simorangkir, L., Daryanti Saragih, I., Suarilah, I., & Tzeng, H.
- Affiliations
- Sekolah Tinggi Ilmu Kesehatan Santa Elisabeth Medan (ID)
- College of Nursing, Kaohsiung Medical University Kaohsiung Taiwan
- Universitas Airlangga (ID)
- The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (US)
- Venue
- Journal of Nursing Scholarship
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2023-11-13
- Volume
- 56
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 319-330
- ISSN
- 0363-2792 (ISSN-L)
- 1527-6546
- 1547-5069
- OpenAlex
- W4388638593
- Cited by
- 20
- References
- 63
- Citations by year
- 2026: 11 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 1
- FWCI
- 1.01
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Nursing Scholarship (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Occupational Therapy › Occupational Health and Burnout
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › COVID-19 and Mental Health
- Keywords
- mindfulness-based interventions, nurses, psychological distress, occupational stress, anxiety, depression, nurse mental health, workplace mental health interventions
- MeSH terms
- Psychological Distress, Anxiety, Depression, Humans, Nurses, Stress, Psychological, Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic, Mindfulness
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