Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Nurses: A Meta-Analysis of Effects on Compassion Fatigue, Job Burnout, and Traumatic Stress.

Aim: To evaluate the effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions among nurses.

Background: The demanding workload and high emotional investment inherent in nursing practice render nurses vulnerable to compassion fatigue, job burnout, and traumatic stress.

Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted across major English and Chinese electronic databases. Eligibility criteria were restricted to randomized controlled trials examining the effects of mindfulness-based interventions on compassion fatigue, job burnout, or traumatic stress among nurses. The search covered all literature from database inception to August 20, 2025. After reassessment of study eligibility, seven randomized controlled trials involving 578 nurses were included in the final review and meta-analysis. Random-effects models were used for the quantitative syntheses to account for anticipated clinical and methodological heterogeneity across studies.

Results: Mindfulness-based interventions were associated with significant reductions in compassion fatigue, job burnout, and traumatic stress among nurses. For compassion fatigue, four studies involving 296 nurses contributed to the pooled analysis, with mindfulness-based interventions associated with significantly lower compassion fatigue scores (standardized mean differences (SMD) = -1.11, 95% confidence intervals (CI) -1.94 to -0.28, p = 0.009; I2 = 91%). For job burnout, six studies involving 518 nurses showed a significant reduction in burnout scores (SMD = -0.89, 95% CI -1.27 to -0.51, p < 0.00001; I2 = 76%). For traumatic stress, three studies involving 222 nurses showed a significant reduction in traumatic stress scores (SMD = -0.99, 95% CI -1.27 to -0.71, p < 0.00001; I2 = 0%). Because fewer than ten studies contributed to each pooled analysis, publication bias could not be reliably assessed.

Discussion: Mindfulness-based interventions appear to alleviate compassion fatigue, job burnout, and traumatic stress among nurses. However, these findings should be interpreted cautiously because of the limited number of available trials, methodological concerns, and variability in intervention protocols and outcome measures.

Conclusion: Mindfulness-based interventions may represent a promising supportive approach for improving nurses' psychological well-being. Nevertheless, current evidence remains insufficient to support routine implementation as an independent workforce intervention, and further high-quality multicenter randomized controlled trials are required. Implications for nursing: Mindfulness-based interventions may be considered as an optional component of broader occupational well-being strategies, with implementation adapted to local clinical contexts and combined with organizational approaches addressing workload, staffing, workplace conditions, and access to psychological support. Implications for nursing policy: Healthcare administrators and nursing policy-makers may consider supporting evidence-based psychological interventions, including mindfulness-based approaches, as part of comprehensive workforce well-being programs. Such strategies should complement, rather than replace, system-level interventions addressing structural contributors to occupational stress.