817 Promoting Durable Well-Being Among Neurosurgical Professionals via an Interactive, Online, Wellness Educational Initiative

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Burnout is increasingly recognized as a source of worse job satisfaction and well-being within neurosurgery. We initiated a 10-week department-wide wellness course (Peace Education Program, PEP) with the goal of improving well-being. METHODS: We utilized PEP, a free, interactive, online wellness course focusing on 10 domains (hope, appreciation, inner strength, self-awareness, clarity, understanding, dignity, choice, peace, and contentment). Two weeks before and 6 months after the course, we distributed de-identified surveys based upon the validated Schwartz Outcome Scale-10 (SOS) with Likert scale scores 0-6 to assess participant wellness. Completion of the course was defined as attending >7 of 10 sessions. Mann-Whitney U testing analyzed statistical differences between post-and pre-course data. p-values <0.05 were considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Sixty-nine faculty, trainees, and staff registered to participate, 41 joined >1 session, and 15 completed the course. Twenty-one and ten participants completed the pre- and post-course survey, respectively. Pre-course mean(+SD) SOS-10 score was 4.32 ± 1.23, which improved to 5.10 ± 0.75 post-course (p < 0.001). Pre-course, the lowest domain score related to “appreciation” (3.95 ± 1.46); post-course the highest domain score related to “hope” (5.30 ± 0.48). Overall, all 10 domains demonstrated improved mean scores over time, with 5 domains [“inner strength” (p = 0.008), “understanding” (p = 0.030), “hope” (p = 0.020), “choice” (p = 0.026), and “peace” (p = 0.048)] demonstrating statistically significant score improvements six months after course completion. Focusing on participants who completed >7 sessions, we additionally found statistically significant score improvements in the domains of “clarity” (p = 0.019), “contentment” (p = 0.030), and “appreciation” (p = 0.029) six months after course completion. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings demonstrate improved wellness in participants up to 6 months after wellness course completion. Participants attending >7 sessions benefited more than counterparts. This free, interactive, online course can be utilized at other neurosurgical training programs to combat burnout and improve wellness.