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. 2020 Dec 13:9:2164956120977827.
doi: 10.1177/2164956120977827. eCollection 2020.

Stress and Coping Among Health Professions Students During COVID-19: A Perspective on the Benefits of Mindfulness

Christina M Luberto  1   2 , Janice H Goodman  1 , Bonnie Halvorson  3 , Amy Wang  2 , Aviad Haramati  4
Affiliations

Stress and Coping Among Health Professions Students During COVID-19: A Perspective on the Benefits of Mindfulness

Christina M Luberto et al. Glob Adv Health Med. .

Abstract

Many health professions students experience elevated stress and burnout during their professional education and training. With the added challenges of COVID-19, students face a whole new set of stressors. Students in the Spring 2020 semester of our online academic course, "Mindfulness for Healthcare Providers," began confronting the COVID-19 crisis after several weeks of mindfulness meditation practice as part of the course. Students discussed their experiences using the course discussion boards, providing a unique opportunity to explore the practical application of mindfulness for student well-being during a crisis. Themes from the discussion board revealed a range of novel stressors and concerns due to COVID-19 (physical health, mental health, societal implications, academic and clinical training disruptions). All students reported that mindfulness practice helped them cope by improving specific mindfulness skills (focus, appreciation, cognitive de-centering, non-reactivity). Mindfulness training may be a useful approach to promoting student well-being during a crisis.

Keywords: coping; mindfulness; stress.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Conflicting Interests: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Students’ Reports of How Mindfulness Helped Them Cope During COVID-19.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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