P3.L233: Efficacy of a Mindfulness-based Intervention with EEG Corroboration for Managing Burnout in Pediatric Healthcare Providers

Background: According to Medscape’s 2024 National Physician Burnout Report, Pediatrics remains in the top 5 at 51%. While overall burnout rate is down 9% from 2023, the continued severity appears endemic. Burnout is complex, requiring intervention for both extrinsic (e.g. Job Demands, Workplace Culture) and intrinsic (e.g. Perfectionism, Personal Life) factors to identify and recover from. Pediatric healthcare providers are a uniquely vulnerable subset facing the challenges of treating infants and children while also communicating with their caregiver(s).

Benefits of a mindfulness-based meditation curriculum are well established. However, few studies have evaluated the efficacy of mindfulness with pre- and post-meditation EEG waveforms. This study aimed to determine if mindfulness training decreases burnout when incorporated into the teaching curriculum. We also explored the correlation between meditation practice and EEG waveforms with Muse™ EEGs. Given the multifaceted nature of burnout, EEGs provide objective brainwave activity for further insight on interventions to manage burnout and build resilience.

Methods: Participants were recruited from two NYC hospitals in 2019-2023 via voluntary opt-in (see Demographics in Figure 1). Methodology involved standardized surveys and meditations delivered by trained ambassadors over 12 weeks (Figure 1). The Initial and Final values of each score and subscore were computed, followed by Final minus Initial values. An F-test was run between the levels of each categorical variable and p-values calculated with a test level of 0.05. All calculations were done in R version 4.2.2. The last phase included 3 minute Muse™ EEG sessions for pre- and post-meditation.

Results: Combined, the cohorts included pediatric healthcare providers (N=69) with a subset using EEGs (n=13). Mindfulness was assessed in nonreactivity to internal emotions and thoughts, and in acting with present awareness. Comparing Initial and Final surveys, participants showed significantly increased work engagement (p=0.027). As the study progressed, participants viewed their thoughts more as mental reflections, accepting they could differ from reality (p=0.04). This was associated with an increase in mind neutral time (less mind wandering), shown in Graph 1.

Conclusion: A mindfulness-based meditation curriculum is one technique to mitigate burnout and may help healthcare providers decrease maladaptive responses and build resilience. Weekly meditation resulted in a calm post-meditation mental and physiological state. Pre- and post-meditation EEG readings can provide objective brainwave and physiologic data, supporting the efficacy of mindfulness training.

Variables we noted post-study but couldn’t quantify included caffeine use and average sleep time. Future studies should consider these and balance their effects to minimize bias. Significant findings were limited by the small n of our EEG subgroup, but further evidence is expected as the study expands and will be strengthened by a higher N value. Such interventions may help healthcare providers build resilience through mindfulness and increase internal awareness.