The Impact of Mindfulness on Stress and Burnout of New Graduate Nurses as a Component of a Nurse Residency Program

OBJECTIVE This evidence-based practice project assessed the impact of integrating mindfulness training into an existing nurse residency program. BACKGROUND Stress and burnout are endemic in healthcare. The transition to practice is associated with stress and anxiety for newly graduated nurses. Evidence supports mindfulness-based interventions to mitigate stress and burnout and improve the workplace environment and patient outcomes. METHODS This project employed a pre/post design to measure burnout, stress, and mindfulness, comparing means and standard deviations between intervention and comparison nurse residency cohorts. Mindfulness training was integrated at 4 points within the 1st 6 months of the residency program. RESULTS The intervention cohort reported significantly less burnout and stress and more mindfulness at 6 months than the comparison group. CONCLUSIONS Mindfulness training can be feasibly integrated into an existing nurse residency program to decrease stress and burnout for new graduate nurses during the transition to practice.