Shared meditation involving cancer patients, health professionals and third persons is relevant and improves well-being: IMPLIC pilot study
Virginie Prévost, Sophie Lefèvre‐Arbogast, Alexandra Leconte, C. Delorme, Sandrine Benoit, Titi Tran, Bénédicte Clarisse
BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies May 18, 2022 DOI: 10.1186/s12906-022-03599-w (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Pilot study Randomized Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 30 |
| Population | Cancer patients, health professionals, and third persons |
| Duration | 12 weekly sessions of 1.5 hours and a half-day retreat |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Context archaeology Empathy Intervention counseling Clinical psychology Compassion Nursing Psychotherapist |
| Citations | 7 |
| Registration | NCT04410185 |
| Key points | A shared meditation program was feasible and acceptable, with high attendance and satisfaction, and participants reported significant improvements in stress, quality of life, self-efficacy, and mindfulness. |
Abstract
Background: Alleviating suffering and improving quality of life are universally shared goals. In this context, we implemented a pilot study to assess the feasibility and acceptability of a mindfulness intervention in the form of meditation involving together cancer patients, health professionals, and third persons.
Methods: Two groups of 15 participants equally composed of patients, health professionals and third persons were constituted. A dedicated programme on mindfulness and compassion was constructed, including 12 weekly sessions of 1.5 h and a half-day retreat. Adherence and satisfaction with the programme were evaluated. All participants completed questionnaires on perceived stress, quality of life, mindfulness, empathy, and self-efficacy. Burnout was assessed in health professionals.
Results: Shared meditation was feasible as 70% of participants attended ≥ 80% of the 13 meditation sessions. Satisfaction with the programme was high (median satisfaction score: 9.1 out of 10) and all participants expressed positive attitudes towards shared meditation and a benefit on their global quality of life. Participants reported significant improvement in stress (p < 0.001), global quality of life (p = 0.004), self-efficacy (p < 0.001), and mindfulness skills (p < 0.001) from baseline to post-programme.
Conclusions: This study demonstrated the feasibility of a shared dedicated meditation programme in terms of participation and acceptability of participants. The measured benefits observed among participants furthermore justify the interest of a subsequent randomized study aiming to demonstrate the potential added value of shared meditation by promoting bridge-building between cancer patients, health professionals and others.
Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov. NCT04410185 . Registered on June 1, 2020.
Comparable studies
Other non-randomized and open-label trials on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in Relation to Quality of Life, Mood, Symptoms of Stress, and Immune Parameters in Breast and Prostate Cancer Outpatients Early-stage breast and prostate cancer patients | 2003 | Pre-post intervention study | n = 59 |
| Exploring self‐compassion and empathy in the context of mindfulness‐based stress reduction (MBSR) Community sample | 2010 | Pre-post intervention study | |
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Lowers Psychological Distress In Medical Students Second-year medical students | 2003 | Prospective nonrandomized cohort-controlled study | n = 302 |
| Intensive meditation training, immune cell telomerase activity, and psychological mediators. Retreat participants and matched controls | 2011 | Controlled trial with wait-list control group | n = 60 |
| The Effectiveness of Mindfulness Training for Children with ADHD and Mindful Parenting for their Parents Children aged 8-12 with ADHD and their parents | 2011 | Within-group waitlist controlled trial | n = 22 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 4
- A randomised study to evaluate the potential added value of shared meditation involving people with cancer, health professionals and third persons compared to meditation conducted with patients only: design of the Implic-2 protocol. BMC cancer September 4, 2024
- Evaluation of a Five-Minute Meditation Intervention During Weekly Palliative Care Clinical Rounds. Journal of Palliative Medicine April 26, 2025
- The Experience of Shared Meditation Involving People With Cancer, Health Professionals and Third Persons: A Qualitative Focus-Group Study Integrative Cancer Therapies April 1, 2026
- Shared Meditation Involving Cancer Patients, Health Professionals and Third Persons: Perceptions of Participants Through a Focus Group Study Integrative Cancer Therapies July 15, 2023
Cites 16
- Mindfulness‐based interventions for psychological and physical health outcomes in cancer patients and survivors: A systematic review and meta‐analysis of randomized controlled trials Psycho-Oncology September 11, 2019
- The Age‐Well randomized controlled trial of the Medit‐Ageing European project: Effect of meditation or foreign language training on brain and mental health in older adults Alzheimer's & Dementia 2018
- Examining the Occurrence and Clinical Impact of Difficult Experiences that Emerge during a Mindfulness-Based Intervention among Individuals at High-Risk of Suicide. Mindfulness June 18, 2024
- Meditation involving people with cancer, medical staff and witnesses: a pilot study exploring improvement in wellness and connectedness. BMJ Open November 12, 2021
- Mindfulness in healthcare professionals and medical education International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health January 22, 2021
and 11 more in the library