On Teaching a Healthcare Adaptation of MSC

By Natalie Bell, Certified MSC Teacher Many teachers have asked about offering a shorter, adapted version of the 8-week MSC program. We know that for some populations, i.e. professional caregivers like healthcare professionals, doctors, nurses and allied health professionals, committing to an 8-week program 2 1/2 hrs per week can seem too daunting or prohibitive with their work schedules. Last year Kristin Neff began testing a pilot four-session adaptation with healthcare professionals that showed improvement in self-compassion but no affect on burnout and no other improvement over an active peer support control group. Kristin thinks that there may not be enough time for practice in this program and is going to test a 6-session program with a few changes. We had announced the four-session program in the Powerschool Learning group, MSC and Caregiving Professionals, as a program that could be piloted just for healthcare professionals as a way of collecting more feedback on feasibility and to give teachers a chance to offer a more in-depth introduction to the 8-week MSC program. Several teachers have planned to offer the adaptation this winter and spring, and Kristin is recommending that, if possible, it be extended to a six-session offering. We will be having a Zoom call about this on Wed. Feb. 21 at 12 PM PST. It is important to note that the adaptation, titled "Inner Resiliency Training," is not an official MSC program since it is just 1/4 of the original 8-wk program and there is not yet sufficient evidence to make claims that we have made for the 8-week program. If you have an opportunity to introduce MSC to healthcare professionals, we recommend a 1-3 hour introductory workshop as a way of obtaining interest in the longer evidence-based 8-week program. If you are interested in offering the six-session program, please join the Powerschool Learning group and state your interest. You will be required to give feedback on the program upon completion. We thank you for your patience and understanding on careful dissemination of this adaptation as we want to be clear about any potential benefits of a shorter program. Natalie Bell Mindful Wellness www.nataliebell.com (310) 266-7414