Date of Award

Spring 5-21-2022

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

MA - Master of Arts

Department

Mindfulness Studies

First Advisor

Melissa Jean

Second Advisor

Andrew Olendzki

Abstract

The Center for Mind-Body Medicine (CMBM), founded by Dr. James Gordon, provides communities with evidence-based Mind-Body Skills Groups (MBSGs) that foster self-care, self-awareness, and self-expression. MBSGs range from 8 to 12-week series on various mind-body practices wherein group members meet, practice, and reflect on the impact of mind-body skills in their lives. Research has demonstrated that participants in MBSGs have positive outcomes. Healthcare professionals (HCPs), especially nurses, gain resiliency from MBSGs. As facilitators of MBSGs, nurses develop essential skills transferable to clinical and educational settings. MBSGs are therapeutic for adult participants with chronic stress. Prior to this thesis, only one study examined the impact of facilitating MBSGs on the facilitator. There was no research on the nurse as an MBSG facilitator. This paper examines the influence of mindfulness on the CMBM model, which uniquely provides MBSGs to various populations. It also investigates the CMBM model’s impact on the nurse facilitators’ ability to be mindfully aware and responsive. The paper utilizes a cross-sectional qualitative research design; the researcher interviewed five nurse facilitators of MBSGs to capture their nuanced experiences. The semi-structured interviews revealed the following three themes: (1) self-care (subthemes: self-care during COVID-19, mindfulness as self-care, and leaning toward compassion to find safety and self-compassion); (2) patient applications (subthemes: compassionate presence as a mind-body skill and a platform to share other mind-body skills); and (3) finding confidence. The interview findings suggest MBSG facilitation has potential to be a nursing intervention; MBSGs could enhance nursing resilience in healthcare organizations and nursing colleges.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 License.

Language

English

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