Virtual Group Medical Visits to Decrease Stress and Increase Sleep Quality in a Rural Community: A Quality...

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Behavioral Medicine
• Quality Improvement Projects

Background:

• Group medical visits (GMVs) effectively address chronic disease care gaps and promote healthy lifestyle education.
• A previously piloted sleep and stress management GMV program was enhanced to improve patient outcomes.
• Patients with poor stress management, anxiety, insomnia, or poor sleep habits were targeted for intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of an enhanced virtual group medical visit program for sleep and stress management.
• To assess the impact of the program on sleep quality and perceived stress levels.
• To identify potential improvements in patient well-being through a structured intervention.

Main Methods:

• A virtual GMV series comprised four 90-minute, biweekly sessions.
• Sleep quality was measured using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI).
• Perceived stress was assessed using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS).

Main Results:

• Ten participants completed the program, with 90% attending 3-4 sessions.
• A statistically significant improvement in sleep quality was observed (p<0.05).
• No significant improvement in perceived stress was found post-intervention.

Conclusions:

• The enhanced GMV program effectively improved sleep quality in participants.
• Further research is needed to enhance stress reduction components within GMVs.
• Virtual GMVs show promise for improving specific health behaviors like sleep hygiene.