An Evaluation of a Mind-Body Medicine Training Program for Parole Services Division Staff

An Evaluation of a Mind-Body Medicine Training Program for Parole Services Division Staff

The goal of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a mind-body medicine training program on parole services staff. The main questions it aims to answer are:

• Will participation in the training increase resilience; empathy; the belief that one can cope with difficult situations; and decrease symptoms of depression, stress, anxiety, and burnout?
• What is the personal and professional impact of the training program?

Sixty staff members of the Indiana Department of Correction Parole Services Division will do the following:

• Attend an initial 4-day mind-body medicine training. Mind-body techniques taught in the training include: meditation; a breathing exercise; biofeedback; guided imagery; expressing oneself through drawings and writing; movement to reduce stress; and family trees to explore family dynamics.
• Attend a 2-day practicum. The 2-day practicum will teach staff the ways in which they can share the skills they have learned one-on-one with parolees and families of parolees.
• Attend 4 biweekly sessions of 2-hour group consultation sessions. The consultations will support the use of the mind-body skills with the parolees.

Participants will also do the following:

• Fill out standardized questionnaires online before and after the training program in order to measure changes in resilience; empathy; the belief that one can cope with difficult situations; and symptoms of depression, stress, anxiety, and burnout.
• Fill out an additional online questionnaire three months after the consultation sessions to determine how trainees are using the mind-body skills in their work.
• Participate in an online group interview to determine how trainees are using the skills and how the training has affected them personally and professionally.

Inclusion Criteria for Mind-Body Medicine Training :

• Being a staff member of the Division of Parole Services
• English Speaking
• Being 18 years of age or older
• Able to fully participate in the training and the small groups included in the training

Exclusion Criteria for Mind-Body Medicine Training:

• None: It is expected that all parole staff will be able to fully participate in the training and the small groups included in the training

Inclusion Criteria for Focus Group Participation :

• Completion of the Mind-Body Medicine Training
• Currently supervising parolees
• Teaching or using mind-body skills with their supervised parolees
• Being 18 years of age or older
• English speaking.

Exclusion Criteria for Focus Group Participation:

• None, as long as the trained staff meet the inclusion criteria.