Reimagining Integrative Medicine Fellowship Core Competencies with a Health Equity Lens.

Integrative medicine (IM) fellowships have grown significantly over the past decade. This review examines gaps in the original IM competencies and key revisions aligned with the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) domains, informed by a multi-phase stakeholder engagement process. A task force from the Academic Consortium for Integrative Medicine and Health conducted a systematic review of existing IM competencies, ACGME core competencies, and relevant Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) frameworks.

Resiliency Among Mass General Brigham Hospital Employees Post-COVID-19 Pandemic.

Background: Healthcare workers face an elevated risk of chronic stress and burnout, for which resiliency interventions are needed.

Methods: The Stress Management and Resiliency Training Program (SMART-3RP; 8 weekly 90-minute sessions) was offered to 254 hospital employees between 2/2021 and 1/2024. Participants were surveyed pre- and post-intervention for measures of resiliency, stress coping, positive affect, perceived stress, anxiety, and depression.

Advancing Health Equity in Integrative Health: The Role of Collaborative Educational Partnerships in Addressing Structural Racism.

Background: Integrative Health (IH) professional organizations are responsible for advancing health equity and addressing structural racism.

Objective: The Academy of Integrative Health and Medicine (AIHM) partnered with the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine to co-create a longitudinal curriculum for its board and staff to address structural racism and health equity in IH.

Methods: We administered a 2-phase curriculum addressing health equity in IH.

Qigong and Tai Chi for ME/CFS: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Objective: Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a chronic and debilitating illness with symptoms such as post-exertional malaise and cognitive dysfunction that can be challenging for patients to manage independently. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have examined mind-body and psychological approaches that teach patients coping skills for mitigating ME/CFS symptoms, including emerging literature on Qigong or Tai Chi instruction programs. This systematic review aims to summarize the characteristics of these trials and highlight potential areas for future optimization and refinement.

Designing a Perioperative Mind-Body Intervention for Peripheral Vascular Interventions.

Background: Peripheral vascular interventions (PVIs) performed under procedural sedation and analgesia (PSA) can be associated with anxiety and poor compliance with patient instructions during surgery. Mind-body interventions (MBIs) such as meditation have demonstrated the potential to decrease perioperative anxiety, though this area is understudied, and no tailored interventions have been developed for the vascular surgical patient population.

Objectives: We aimed to design a perioperative MBI that specifically targeted vascular surgical patients undergoing PVIs under PSA.

Implementation and Evaluation of a National Well-Being Curriculum for KL2 Scholars.

The study aimed to pilot test a well-being curriculum for KL2 scholars to be used across the Clinical and Translational Science Award consortium. Between November 2022, and May 2023, 36 KL2 scholars from 25 hubs participated in the program. The General Well-Being Index for U.

Well-being grants in an academic medical center: A case example.

Academic medical centers (AMCs) rely on engaged and motivated faculty for their success. Significant burnout among clinical and research faculty has resulted in career disengagement and turnover. As such, AMCs must be vested in cultivating faculty engagement and well-being through novel initiatives that support faculty.

A Randomized Controlled Trial of Community-Delivered Heated Hatha Yoga for Moderate-to-Severe Depression.

To evaluate feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of heated yoga to treat moderate-to-severe depression. An 8-week randomized controlled trial (RCT) of heated yoga versus waitlist control was conducted from March 2017 to August 2019. Participants in the yoga condition were asked to attend heated yoga classes at 2 community heated yoga studios at least twice weekly.

Meditative and Mindfulness-Focused Interventions in Neurology: Principles, Science, and Patient Selection.

A growing body of research suggests that meditative- and mindfulness-focused interventions may improve neuropsychiatric symptoms that commonly occur in a range of neurological disorders. In this article, the principles of meditation and mindfulness are first defined, as well as briefly describing the neurobiological mechanisms implicated in these interventions. Thereafter, a range of meditative- and mindfulness-focused interventions are detailed, along with their supporting evidence to treat neuropsychiatric symptoms in neurological conditions (e.

Moderators of a resiliency group intervention for frontline clinicians during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: To mitigate the psychological burdens of COVID-19 for frontline clinicians (FCs), we adapted an existing evidence-based resiliency program, Stress Management and Resilience Training Relaxation Response Program (SMART-3RP), for FCs. This analysis explores moderators of stress coping to determine which subgroups of FCs benefited most from SMART-3RP.

Methods: 102 FCs from Mass General Brigham hospitals engaged in the adapted SMART-3RP.

Wellness Program Implementation in an Academic Radiology Department: Determination of Need, Organizational Buy-in, and Outcomes.

Objective: To implement a multifaceted wellness program in an academic radiology department to prevent burnout and to assess initial outcomes with special focus on the challenges related to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Methods: A wellness program was established to address institutional and personal factors of burnout. The program focused on interventions to improve efficiency of practice, provide personal and career support, and create a culture of wellness.

Initial Management of Acute and Chronic Low Back Pain: Responses from Brief Interviews of Primary Care Providers.

In April 2017, the American College of Physicians (ACP) published a clinical practice guideline for low back pain (LBP) recommending nonpharmacologic treatments as first-line therapy for acute, subacute, and chronic LBP. To assess primary care provider (PCP)-reported initial treatment recommendations for LBP following guideline release. Cross-sectional structured interviews.

Evaluation of a Yoga-Based Mind-Body Intervention for Resident Physicians: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Background And Objective: Mind-body interventions (MBIs) have been shown to be effective individual-level interventions for mitigating physician burnout, but there are no controlled studies of yoga-based MBIs in resident physicians. We assessed the feasibility of a yoga-based MBI called RISE (resilience, integration, self-awareness, engagement) for residents among multiple specialties and academic medical centers.

Methods: We conducted a waitlist controlled randomized clinical trial of the RISE program with residents from multiple specialty departments at three academic medical centers.

A Pilot Study of a Stress Management Program for Incarcerated Veterans.

Introduction: Veterans involved in the justice system are an understudied population warranting attention given their higher risk of mental health concerns and psychosocial challenges. Thus, there is a need for programs to support the psychological health of incarcerated veterans. The present study sought to determine the acceptability and effectiveness of a mind-body stress reduction program for incarcerated veterans.

Impact of a Yogic Breathing Technique on the Well-Being of Healthcare Professionals During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has created unprecedented challenges for healthcare globally, the brunt of which has been borne by the health care providers (HCPs). These challenges are felt more keenly in India, as they stretch an insufficiently resourced healthcare system. The long hours, cross over of responsibilities, lack of resources to adequately care for patients, and concerns around safety of self and loves ones, have led to a spike in anxiety, depression, insomnia and other stress - related disorders in healthcare providers.