Mindfulness and meditation, when practiced by healthcare providers, could help reduce instances of healthcare-associated infections and medical errors, according to the medical director of the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine.
In a piece in The Washington Post, Melinda Ring, MD, explained how the center is researching the effects of mindfulness on physician and nurse decision making and care quality.
According to Dr. Ring, mindfulness is the practice of maintaining awareness of thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations and the surrounding environment on a moment-by-moment basis. The practice has roots in Hindu and Buddhist teachings.
In the Osher Center's investigation, Dr. Ring has found positive impacts on patient care and physician well-being when the providers practice mindfulness meditation, according to the piece. "This is important, because healthcare provider burnout has been significantly associated with an increase in medical errors," she wrote.
Though the research is relatively new, some health systems have taken steps to teach mindfulness to providers to help eliminate medical errors. Dr. Ring gave examples such as Scripps Health in San Diego, where they are piloting a program that would teach mindfulness for free to employees, and Georgetown School of Medicine, which offers an elective course on mind-body medicine.