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Cited by 110Mindfulness and Compassion InterventionsHealthcare professionals’ stress and burnoutStress and Burnout Research

A systematic review and meta-analysis of meditative interventions for informal caregivers and health professionals

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Dharmawardene, Marisa, Givens, Jane, Wachholtz, Amy, Makowski, Suzana, Tjia, Jennifer·2016·BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care
DOI 10.1136/bmjspcare-2014-000819PMC PMC4583788
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Abstract

BACKGROUND: Burnout, stress and anxiety have been identified as areas of concern for informal caregivers and health professionals, particularly in the palliative setting. Meditative interventions are gaining acceptance as tools to improve well-being in a variety of clinical contexts, however, their effectiveness as an intervention for caregivers remains unknown. AIM: To explore the effect of meditative interventions on physical and emotional markers of well-being as well as job satisfaction and burnout among informal caregivers and health professionals. DESIGN: Systematic review of randomised clinical trials and pre-post intervention studies with meditative interventions for caregivers. DATA SOURCES: PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL and PsycINFO were searched up to November 2013. Of 1561 abstracts returned, 68 studies were examined in full text with 27 eligible for systematic review. RESULTS: Controlled trials of informal caregivers showed statistically significant improvement in depression (effect size 0.49 (95% CI 0.24 to 0.75)), anxiety (effect size 0.53 (95% CI 0.06 to 0.99)), stress (effect size 0.49 (95% CI 0.21 to 0.77)) and self-efficacy (effect size 0.86 (95% CI 0.5 to 1.23)), at an average of 8 weeks following intervention initiation. Controlled trials of health professionals showed improved emotional exhaustion (effect size 0.37 (95% CI 0.04 to 0.70)), personal accomplishment (effect size 1.18 (95% CI 0.10 to 2.25)) and life satisfaction (effect size 0.48 (95% CI 0.15 to 0.81)) at an average of 8 weeks following intervention initiation. CONCLUSIONS: Meditation provides a small to moderate benefit for informal caregivers and health professionals for stress reduction, but more research is required to establish effects on burnout and caregiver burden.

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Authors
Dharmawardene, M., Givens, J., Wachholtz, A., Makowski, S., & Tjia, J.
Affiliations
  • University of Calgary (CA)
  • Harvard University (US)
  • University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School (US)
Corresponding author
Tjia, Jennifer
ORCID
Venue
BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care
Publisher
BMJ
Published
2015-03-26
Volume
6
Issue
2
Pages
160-169
ISSN
  • 2045-435X (ISSN-L)
  • 2045-4368
DOI
10.1136/bmjspcare-2014-000819
PMC
PMC4583788
OpenAlex
W1969352163
Cited by
110
References
24
Citations by year
2026: 3 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 14 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 17 · 2019: 13 · 2018: 10 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 4
FWCI
1.11
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • eScholarship@UMassChan (submittedVersion)
  • HighWire Press Open Archive (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • University of Calgary
  • National Institute on Aging (K23AG034967)
  • National Institute on Drug Abuse (K23DA030397)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Healthcare professionals’ stress and burnout
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Stress and Burnout Research
Keywords
meditation, informal caregivers, healthcare workers, burnout, stress reduction, anxiety, depression, self-efficacy, job satisfaction, emotional exhaustion, personal accomplishment, life satisfaction, palliative care, caregiver burden, well-being
MeSH terms
Anxiety, Burnout, Professional, Female, Health Personnel, Humans, Male, Stress, Psychological, Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic, Treatment Outcome, Caregivers, Publication Bias, Meditation

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