Building a Meditation Room to Improve Critical Care Nurse’s Work Environment: An Evidence-Based Practice Project

Background: Burnout, stress, and compassion fatigue are common among nurses, especially for those working in intensive care and during night shifts, and may contribute to the global nursing shortage. Thus, nursing organizations have issued recommendations to improve workplace health. Aligned with these initiatives, we sought to improve nurses' stress by creating a meditation room in the intensive care unit at a hospital in Miami. Methods: This evidence-based practice project took place from March to August 2023. The meditation room opened in May 2023 with a variety of therapeutic modalities, including meditation, music, and aromatherapy. We conducted two custom-designed surveys to assess staff perceptions of stress and the meditation room before and after implementation. Results: Twenty-four nurses completed the pre-implementation survey and 25 completed the post-implementation survey. Prior to opening the meditation room, 63% (n = 15) of nurses indicated they did not have a space to recharge at work. Most (n = 22; 92%) indicated that having such a space was “important” or “very important.” After opening the meditation room, 76% (n = 19) of nurses indicated they utilized it. All the nurses who utilized the room said it was easy to use and decreased individual and unit-wide stress levels. Twenty-four percent of respondents (n = 6), all night shift workers, did not use the meditation room, with most indicating they did not have time to. Conclusion: The meditation room was well-received, with most nurses reporting lower individual and unit-wide stress. Half of the night shift nurses did not use the room, primarily because of a lack of time. Future initiatives should target night shift work environments to ensure the well-being of all nurses.