Undergraduate pharmacy students' experiences of a mindfulness-based intervention

Stress negatively impacts upon physical and mental health, and pharmacy students demonstrate higher levels of stress than the general population. Mindfulness may be a suitable way to improve pharmacy students' stress and distress levels in order to cope with academic pressures and professional responsibilities. The objective of this study was to obtain students' views and insights into the content and design of a mindfulness-based intervention.

Undergraduate pharmacy students in University College Cork who had completed at least 75% of a four-week mindfulness course offered during the 2016 to 2017 academic year were invited to participate in follow-up interviews. Local ethical approval was obtained. Recruitment occurred via email. Audio-recorded interviews were conducted, transcribed, and de-identified by the mindfulness tutor and primary researcher. Transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis.

A total of 21 participants (62% female) representing all year groups were interviewed in March 2017. Thematic analysis generated the following four key themes regarding the mindfulness course: 1) common humanity - an essential foundation, 2) personal development and self-awareness, 3) implementation - striking a balance, and 4) challenges of social influences.

The results of this study will be instrumental in deciding how to best bring this research forward. Mindfulness may have an important future role to play in pharmacy and healthcare education.