Feasibility of a Yoga- and Mindfulness-Based Intervention for Resident Physicians

Overview

The investigators aim to initiate and complete the first investigation of the effect of a yoga-based program on resident physicians' psychological health using a randomized controlled trial to assess feasibility of the program in this population and measure outcomes across several domains. To meet the goals of the proposed project the investigators have identified 3 specific aims: Specific Aim 1: Assess the acceptability and feasibility of the yoga program through measuring participation and conducting standardized interviews with a subset of yoga participants. Specific Aim 2: Evaluate the effect of the yoga program on resident physicians' stress, burnout, resilience, mindfulness, mood, depression, anxiety, and sleep quality using quantitative self-report measures. Specific Aim 3. Examine whether outcome measures were perceived as relevant to the participants' work environment and were not burdensome as to the length and content of the program.

The project will implement a single group mixed-methods randomized controlled trial to investigate the impact of the 6-week RISE program on psychological health in Longwood medical area residents. The RISE program is an existing standardized yoga program at Kripalu that will be adapted for residents in a 60-90-minute, once-weekly class for six weeks. Participants will be randomized to either the RISE yoga program or a no-treatment control group. Participants randomized to the RISE program will also be instructed to maintain a short 10-15-minute daily home yoga practice. Sessions will be lead by experienced instructors from Kripalu and will be held in the Longwood medical area. Self-report outcomes will be assessed at baseline, at program completion (post-program), at 2-month follow-up, and at 6-month follow-up. Participants will include resident physicians at Longwood medical area hospitals. The only exclusion criterion is having practiced yoga, meditation, tai chi, qigong, or another mind-body practice at least 25 hours or more in the past 6 months. Participants must be willing not to practice mind-body programs other than the treatment protocol during the intervention. We plan to enroll up to 200 participants with a goal of at least 60 participants with a 2:1 ratio of participants randomized to yoga to participants randomized to control. The control group will receive one session of RISE after their participation in the trial is complete.