Qigong therapy for physiotherapists suffering from burnout: a preliminary study

Area of Science:

• Integrative Medicine
• Occupational Health
• Mind-Body Therapies

Background:

• Burnout is prevalent among physiotherapists.
• Effective self-management strategies for burnout are needed.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate burnout prevalence in physiotherapists.
• To assess the efficacy of "White Ball" Qigong in mitigating burnout symptoms.
• To gather preliminary data for a larger-scale study.

Main Methods:

• 106 physiotherapists completed demographic and Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) questionnaires.
• Eight physiotherapists with high burnout underwent a 3-week "White Ball" Qigong intervention.
• A control group of eight physiotherapists were on a waiting list; both groups repeated the MBI.

Main Results:

• Qigong intervention significantly reduced Emotional Exhaustion (P=0.023) and Depersonalization (P=0.013) scores.
• Emotional Exhaustion mean values decreased from 38.0 to 31.4 in the qigong group, while rising in the control group.
• No statistically significant difference was observed in the Personal Accomplishment subscale between groups.

Conclusions:

• "White Ball" Qigong effectively reduces burnout symptoms as measured by the MBI.
• This qigong practice is a viable tool for self-managing burnout.
• The findings support the development of larger, controlled studies on qigong for burnout.