Compassion Cultivation Training for Nurses

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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The purpose of this study is to evaluate the feasibility of implementing a Compassion Cultivation Training (CCT) program for oncology nurses at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center. The goal of CCT is to provide a structured and systematic way of cultivating daily-life skills needed to strengthen qualities of compassion, empathy, and kindness for oneself and others. CCT typically includes (i) eight weekly 2-hour classes and (ii) daily practice. The in-class activities include pedagogical instruction and active group discussion, guided meditation, interactive practical exercises, and sharing of inspiring readings/stories to prime feelings of open-heartedness or connection to others.

Detailed Description
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The Compassion Cultivation Training (CCT) protocol is a secular course that was developed by the Center for Compassion & Altruism Research and Education (CCARE) at Stanford University, School of Medicine (Jinpa, 2013). The course was developed by Thupten Jinpa, PhD, in collaboration with contemplative scholars, psychologists, and scientist at Stanford. The goal of CCT is to provide a structured and systematic way of cultivating daily-life skills needed to strengthen qualities of compassion, empathy, and kindness for oneself and others. CCT typically includes (i) eight weekly 2-hour classes and (ii) daily practice. The in-class activities include pedagogical instruction and active group discussion, guided meditation, interactive practical exercises, and sharing of inspiring readings/stories to prime feelings of open-heartedness or connection to others. The daily practice includes both formal and informal practices. Participants are provided with formal guided meditations that are 15 to 30 minutes long in the form of MP3 or cds. Participants may receive practices and instructions via email with a link to the location of the MP3. They will be provided with practice logs to report their amount of practice as well as some basic observations to the research team. In the present study, we will follow the official CCT manual. The training is composed of 8 sessions, which can be delivered in 7-10 weeks.

Official Title
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Compassion Cultivation Training for Nurses

Conditions
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Feasibility

Intervention / Treatment
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* Behavioral: compassion cultivation training


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: Be 18 years of age or older Be willing and able to give informed consent Be a Registered Nurse (RN) Currently works at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center Currently works at least 20 hours/week Be able to speak and read English Exclusion Criteria: Any participants who are deemed to present an acute safety risk to self or others. Any infants, children, or teenagers under 18 years of age. Prisoners

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 18 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
Intervention Model: Single Group Assignment
Interventional Model Description: Single group feasibility study of a psychosocial intervention
Masking: None (Open Label)


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Experimental: Single-Arm Intervention<br>All participants in this arm receive compassion cultivation training | Behavioral: compassion cultivation training<br>* Eight 2-hour group sessions that provide a structured and systematic way of cultivating daily-life skills needed to strengthen qualities of compassion, empathy, and kindness for oneself and others.<br>|

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Number of individuals who do not drop out of the study prior to completing the post-intervention assessment | Number of individuals who do not drop out of the study prior to completing the post-intervention assessment | 24 weeks after first session | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Perceived Stress Scale | self-report instrument that measures perceptions of stress | baseline and 7-10 weeks | 
| Maslach Burnout Inventory | self-report instrument that measures emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and acheivement | baseline and 7-10 weeks | 
| Philadelphia Mindfulness Scale | self-report instrument that measures present moment awareness and acceptance | baseline and 7-10 weeks | 
| Distress Tolerance Scale | self-report instrument that measures feelings of distress | baseline and 7-10 weeks | 
| SF-36 | self-report measure of health-related quality of life | baseline and 7-10 weeks |