Mindfulness Meditation in Nursing Practice: an Educational Module to Assist With Decreasing Stress in Nursing

The demands of nursing can be challenging both personally and professionally. Nurses often place the needs of the patient, the patient’s families, and the organization above their own. Consistent care of others without proper attention and care to one’s own needs can lead to increased stress and possible burnout of the nurse. It is important for nurse leaders to promote self-care to nurses so they can provide excellent compassionate patient care from the heart. Nurses working in a fast-paced ambulatory clinic at a Midwest teaching institution were identified as having stressful days, often without times for breaks. An educational module and a 30-day pilot utilizing mindfulness meditation during a daily workday huddle was developed to help keep nurses grounded and present in the moment. A survey will be used to evaluate the educational session and the 30-day pilot of daily mindfulness meditation in the practice. Watson’s Theory of Human Caring guided the development of the mindfulness meditation education and the content of the educational module. A tree as a metaphor is a pictorial representation to explain how Watson’s theory and mindfulness meditation can help nurses to provide heart centered care