Feasibility and Preliminary Outcomes of the “Naru” Program, a Reiki-Informed Meditative Intervention for First-Year Nursing Students: A Single-Group Pilot Study
Nuno Filipe De Oliveira Gil Salgado, Tereza Maria Mendes Diniz De Andrade Barroso, Maria Isabel Dias Marques, Maria Angélica De Almeida PeresPurpose
To assess the feasibility and acceptability of the “
Design
Single-group pretest–posttest pilot feasibility study.
Methods
Informed by Transitions Theory and holistic nursing, a seven-session hybrid program combined the spiritual precepts of Reiki with Joshin Kokyu Ho breathing meditation and guided imagery; five mental health nurses appraised its content. Of 413 students invited, 61 were screened, 29 eligible, 22 started, and 12 completed. Feasibility outcomes were uptake, retention, adherence, and acceptability; distress and well-being were assessed with the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales – 21 and the Psychological Well-Being Manifestation Measure Scale, with Wilcoxon signed-rank tests.
Findings
The program was delivered as designed and well received: participants reproduced the meditation independently, some during clinical placements. Uptake was 14.8% and retention 54.5%; attrition concentrated at year-end. Distress decreased and well-being increased on all retained subscales, with large effect sizes and bootstrap intervals excluding zero for all but one measure; reliable improvement was most frequent in well-being and happiness.
Conclusions
Delivery and acceptability were established; recruitment and retention were not, and require changes to timing and recruitment before a controlled trial. Efficacy cannot be inferred.