Building Resiliency in a Palliative Care Team: A Pilot Study

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Psychology
• Palliative Care

Background:

• Palliative care clinicians (PCCs) face high burnout risk due to chronic stress from caring for seriously ill patients.
• Burnout in PCCs can result in absenteeism, communication errors, medical mistakes, and staff turnover.
• Effective stress-coping interventions are crucial for this vulnerable professional group.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the feasibility of the Relaxation Response Resiliency Program for Palliative Care Clinicians.
• To evaluate the program's impact on stress and resiliency in a multidisciplinary PCC cohort.
• To determine if the intervention could decrease stress and enhance resilience.

Main Methods:

• A physician-led, two-month intervention comprising five sessions (12 hours total).
• Feasibility assessed by attendance and attrition rates; pre- and post-intervention data collected.
• Nonparametric statistical tests analyzed changes in perceived stress, affect, perspective-taking, optimism, life satisfaction, and self-efficacy.

Main Results:

• The program was feasible, with high attendance (at least 4/5 sessions) and no participant attrition.
• Post-intervention, participants demonstrated significant reductions in perceived stress.
• Improvements were observed in participants' perspective-taking abilities.

Conclusions:

• A novel, team-based resiliency intervention utilizing the relaxation response was feasible for PCCs.
• The findings suggest this intervention may enhance resiliency and mitigate stress-related negative impacts.
• This approach shows promise for protecting PCCs from burnout and improving well-being.