Integrating NIH "Press reset on stress" strategies into DPT curriculum: A quasi-experimental design

Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) students report higher levels of stress and anxiety compared to age-matched peers. Increased stress can negatively impact students' physical conditions and academic performance.

This study aims to incorporate the NIH "Press Reset on Stress" strategies of deep breathing, PMR, and mindfulness into the curriculum for DPT students and evaluate their effectiveness on student-perceived stress, anxiety, and depression.

The research design was a quasi-experimental study. Participants (n = 39) were current DPT students. Weekly Interventions of 5-10 min deep breathing, mindfulness, or progressive muscle relaxation were performed over 13 sessions. Data points of weeks 0,7, and 13 were used to collect outcome measure scores on the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale 21(DASS-21), and the Perceived Stress Scale-10 (PSS-10), while the Stress Numeric Scale (SNS) was collected weekly. Estimations of differences between means and 95% confidence intervals were used to analyze data using a PEDro template. Effect size was measured using Cohen's d.

Estimations of differences between means between beginning and end point results are: DASS21-Anxiety:2.29 (CI: 2.03, 2.55; d: 0.88). DASS21-Stress:0.51 (CI: 0.35, 0.67; d: 3.86). DASS21-Depression: 1.93 (CI: 1.60, 2.26; d: 0.34). PSS-10:1.41(CI: 1.29, 4.11; d:0.23). SNS:1.65 (CI:0.79, 2.51; d: 0.87).

This study demonstrated that integrating stress relief strategies of deep breathing, mindfulness, and progressive muscle relaxation into the curriculum significantly improved outcomes across all three DASS-21 categories and the SNS. Utilizing these strategies may help manage or reduce symptoms of depression, stress, and anxiety among DPT students.