Auricular acupressure may be a safe and effective technique for reducing burnout and secondary traumatic stress in healthcare workers.
Randomised Controlled Trial Burnout
In this prospective randomized trial with an open, parallel-group design, participants were randomized to receive one of three interventions: auricular acupuncture, auricular seed acupressure, or auricular massage. Interventions took place over a period of 3 weeks at a 334-bed Level II pediatric trauma center. Using a pre-/posttest design, the researchers analyzed self-reported scores from the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Professional Quality of Life scale, and the Caring Ability Inventory.
The study found that auricular seed acupressure was associated with a reduction in burnout and secondary traumatic stress. Importantly, this effect remained even after adjusting for individual pretest scores. Attempts at achieving significant effects on anxiety levels, professional quality of life, and caring ability, however, did not yield any significant improvement. Overall, the data suggest that auricular acupressure is a very effective strategy for reducing work-related stress among health care staff.
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