Mindfulness Programs on the Rise in US Medical Schools

In a new study published in Mindfulness, researchers at Cambridge Health Alliance and the University of Southern California examined the prevalence of mindfulness-related activities in 140 accredited US medical schools during 2014. The authors found that approximately 80 percent of those schools have incorporated some form of mindfulness activity (i.e., research, wellness, clinical programs for patients, or curriculum).

The study also found that in 2014, 33 medical schools (about 25 percent of all US medical schools) were affiliated with some kind of mindfulness center, where evidence- and mindfulness-based interventions are offered, and scientific medical research is being conducted.

Mindfulness practice has been shown to increase empathy, improve health-care provider attention, enhance the capacity for listening to patients, and actually decrease medical errors.

This study decisively indicates that mindfulness is being incorporated into US medical education and its associated health-care delivery systems.

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