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CompletedNCT04169724Updated Apr 22, 2020

Meditation for Burnout in PA Students

An interventional study of Calm Meditation in Burnout, Student and Feasibility, sponsored by Arizona State University. Completed at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2020-04-22.

Sponsored by Arizona State University · Not applicable, Interventional, and Supportive care

Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
19
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

This study investigates the feasibility and effects of an app-based mindfulness meditation intervention for PA students.

Read the detailed description

The purpose of this study is to determine the feasibility of an app-based mindfulness meditation intervention for PA students.

The investigators will measure feasibility of using the Calm app for 10-minutes a day for four weeks in PA students. Feasibility will be measured with acceptability (i.e. satisfaction survey), demand (participation in the app as prescribed), and practicality (i.e., survey). Secondly, the investigators will determine the preliminary effects of a 4-week meditation intervention on burnout levels in PA students when compared to a wait list control group. Burnout symptoms (primary outcome), mindfulness, stress levels, and depressive symptoms (secondary outcomes) will be measured at baseline and post-intervention (4-weeks). Data gathered from this study will inform a future randomized controlled trial to determine the effects of a mindfulness meditation app on burnout in PA students. The information could also be used to design other studies assessing burnout in the workplace.

Aim 1: Determine the feasibility (acceptability, demand, practicality) of using the Calm app 10-minutes per day for four weeks in PA students. For the intervention group, our benchmarks will be as follows: 1) Acceptability (i.e., satisfaction) ≥70%, 2) Demand (i.e., participation in the app as prescribed, intention to use) ≥70%, 3) Practicality (i.e., survey) ≥70%.

Aim 2: Determine the preliminary effects of using the Calm app 10-minutes per day for four weeks on burnout (primary outcome) mindfulness, stress levels, and depressive symptoms (secondary outcomes) in PA students as compared to a wait-list control group.

02

Conditions studied

  • Burnout, Student
  • Feasibility
03

In context

Burnout, Psychological

442 studies on the registry are indexed under Burnout, Psychological; 106 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 19 is below the median of 80 across 319 interventional studies indexed under Burnout, Psychological.

Browse Burnout, Psychological studies →

Lead sponsor

Arizona State University is the lead sponsor of 234 studies on the registry; 41 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years and older
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
Yes

Inclusion criteria

  • Physician assistant students currently enrolled in school who do not practice meditation regularly
  • > 18 years of age
  • Able to speak/read/understand English
  • Residing in the U.S.
  • Regular internet access via mobile phone, tablet, etc.
  • Willing to participate in app-based meditation program
  • Burnout, classified as a score greater than or equal to 3 on the non-propriety single item burnout measure.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Physician assistant students who currently (within the last six months) practice meditation
  • Professionals who identify as a practicing physician assistant
  • People who are not currently enrolled in physician assistant school
  • Individuals who are not burnt out, classified as a score less than or equal to 2 on the non-propriety single item burnout measure.
05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Supportive care
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
19 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Calm

    Participants will be asked to download the Calm app on their smartphone. Participants will then receive an email containing login credentials to access the Calm app. Once they receive this email and they receive their study start date, they will be asked to meditate for at least 10 minutes a day for 8 weeks. This prescription mimics how a new, paying member would use the app. Participants in the intervention group will be emailed weekly reminders.

    Behavioral: Calm Meditation

  • No intervention
    Waitlist

    Participants randomized to the control group will be asked to maintain their normal routine for 8 weeks and to avoid using the Calm meditation app.

Interventions

  • BehavioralCalm Meditation

    10 minutes per day of meditation via the Calm app.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Burnout

    The Maslach Burnout Inventory is a 22-item inventory used to measure aspects of the burnout syndrome within three subscales: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal accomplishment. Using a seven-point scale (0, never; 1, a few times per year; 2, once a month; 3, a few times a month; 4, once a week; 5, a few times a week; 6, every day), participants rate their experience of burnout. Possible scores on the emotional exhaustion subscale range from 0 to 54. Possible scores on the depersonalization subscale range from 0 to 30. For both the emotional exhaustion and depersonalization subscales, higher mean scores correspond to higher degrees of burnout. Possible scores on the personal accomplishment subscale range from 0 to 48. Lower mean scores on the personal accomplishment subscale correspond to higher degrees of burnout. Scores are computes via sum.

    Time frame: Change from baseline to post-intervention (week 4).

Secondary outcomes

  1. Mindfulness

    The Freidburg Mindfulness Inventory is used to measure mindfulness using a 14-item questionnaire covering all aspects of mindfulness. Using a four-point scale, (1, rarely; 2, occasionally; 3, fairly often; 4, almost always), participants are asked to characterize their experience of mindfulness. Higher scores indicate higher levels of mindfulness. Scores are computed via sum.

    Time frame: Change from baseline to post-intervention (week 4).

  2. Stress

    The Perceived Stress Scale is a 10-item inventory used for the assessment of perceived stress. The scale measures the degree to which situations are appraised as stressful. The items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 0 (never) to 4 (very often). Higher scores indicate higher levels of stress. Scores are computed via sum.

    Time frame: Change from baseline to post-intervention (week 4).

  3. Depression

    The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 is used to measure and diagnose depression using a 9-item self-report measure. Items are rated 4-item scale ranging from 0 (Not at all) to 3 (nearly every day). Higher scores correspond with more severe depressive symptoms. Scores are computed via sum.

    Time frame: Change from baseline to post-intervention (week 4).

07

Study locations

1 site
  • Arizona Biomedical Collaborative
    Phoenix, Arizona 85004, United States
08

References and documents

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

No publications or documents are linked to this record.

09

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Apr 22, 2020, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT04169724
Lead sponsor
Arizona State University
Collaborators
Calm.com, Inc.
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Nov 20, 2019
Start date
Sep 30, 2019
Primary completion
Mar 9, 2020
Completion
Mar 9, 2020
Last update
Apr 22, 2020

Study contacts

Jennifer Huberty, PhD
principal investigator · Arizona State University

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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This study is completed, as verified in Apr 2020. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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