Objectives

Caring for individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID) or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can be gratifying as well as stressful. Professional staff employed as caregivers often report compromised mental and physical wellbeing due to the stressful nature of working with clients who exhibit aggressive and destructive behaviors. Prolonged work-related stress results in diminished quality of life for the caregivers. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the comparative effects of three programs—mindfulness program, psychoeducational program, and inservice training-as-usual—on the quality of life of professional caregivers who provide services to adolescent and adult clients with ID and ASD

Methods

Professional caregivers (N = 216) were randomized into three experimental conditions, and trained in mindfulness, psychoeducation, and inservice training-as-usual. The effects of the training on the caregivers’ quality of life were assessed in terms of perceived stress, compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue (i.e. burnout, secondary traumatic stress), and symptoms of depression at the end of 32 weeks of implementation.

Results

Perceived stress, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress decreased significantly in the mindfulness condition, followed by psychoeducation, but not in the inservice training-as-usual condition. Compassion satisfaction increased significantly in the mindfulness condition, followed by psychoeducation, but not in the inservice training-as-usual condition. Symptoms of depression, which were rated in the borderline clinical range prior to intervention, decreased significantly to within normal levels in the mindfulness condition, decreased minimally in the psychoeducation condition, and showed no change in the training-as usual condition.

Conclusions

A 3-day training in mindfulness meditations and associated contemplative practices provides a better basis for enhancing caregivers’ quality of life than psychoeducation or inservice training-as-usual.

中文翻译：

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使用正念改善智障和自闭症谱系障碍患者的照顾者的生活质量

目标

照顾智障 (ID) 或自闭症谱系障碍 (ASD) 的人可能令人欣慰，也可能带来压力。由于与表现出攻击性和破坏性行为的客户一起工作的压力性质，受雇为护理人员的专业工作人员经常报告身心健康受到损害。长期与工作相关的压力会导致护理人员的生活质量下降。本研究的目的是评估三个项目——正念项目、心理教育项目和在职培训——对为患有 ID 和 ASD 的青少年和成人客户提供服务的专业护理人员的生活质量的比较影响

方法

专业护理人员 ( N  = 216) 被随机分为三个实验条件，并照常接受正念、心理教育和在职培训。在实施 32 周结束时，根据感知压力、同情心满意度、同情心疲劳（即倦怠、继发性创伤压力）和抑郁症状来评估培训对照顾者生活质量的影响。

结果

在正念条件下，感知压力、倦怠和继发性创伤压力显着降低，其次是心理教育，但在常规训练条件下没有。同情心满意度在正念条件下显着增加，其次是心理教育，但在常规训练条件下没有。抑郁症的症状在干预前​​被评为临界临床范围，在正念条件下显着降低到正常水平，在心理教育条件下减少最小，并且在照常训练条件下没有显示出任何变化。

结论

与常规的心理教育或在职培训相比，为期 3 天的正念冥想和相关沉思练习培训为提高护理人员的生活质量提供了更好的基础。