While stress is a near universal theme in people’s lives, for
some, high or chronic stress can take a major toll on the mind and
body. To help individuals deal with stress more effectively and to
help employers reduce the impact of stress on their business, Aetna
(NYSE: AET) announced today the availability of two new mind-body
stress reduction workplace programs – Mindfulness at Work™
(mindfulness meditation) and Viniyoga Stress Reduction (therapeutic
Viniyoga). Developed and studied in a collaborative effort with
Aetna, Duke Integrative Medicine, eMindful and the American
Viniyoga Institute, these programs have helped participants
significantly reduce their perceived stress levels while improving
their ability to respond to stress.
The Mindfulness at Work™ (mindfulness meditation) and Viniyoga
Stress Reduction (therapeutic Viniyoga) programs were part of the
“Mind-Body Stress Reduction in the Workplace” clinical trial, and
the study results were published recently in the online version of
the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology.
Participants in the mind-body stress reduction treatment groups
(mindfulness and Viniyoga) showed significant improvements in
perceived stress with 36 and 33 percent decreases in stress levels
respectively, as compared to an 18 percent reduction for the
control group as measured with the Perceived Stress Scale.
Participants in the mind-body interventions also saw significant
improvements in various heart rate measurements, suggesting that
their bodies were better able to manage stress. The study results
were demonstrated using these new programs that are about half the
length of other commonly used mind-body interventions. Building on
the success of the study, both programs are now available to
Aetna’s self-insured commercial customers.
“Stress can have a significant impact on physical and mental
health, so there is a strong need for programs that help people
reduce stress as part of achieving their best health,” said Aetna
Chairman and CEO Mark T. Bertolini. “The results from the mind-body
study provide evidence that these mind-body approaches can be an
effective complement to conventional medicine and may help people
improve their health, something that I have experienced
personally.”
Importantly, among all individuals who were screened for the
study, those reporting the highest stress level (top quintile) had
nearly $2,000 higher medical costs for the preceding year than
those reporting the lowest stress levels.
“The connection between higher stress levels and higher medical
costs is logical. Highly stressed individuals are at greater risk
for many different health conditions, such as coronary heart
disease, some cancers, diabetes, depression and anxiety, and
obesity,” said Dr. Ruth Q. Wolever, Director of Research and
Clinical Health Psychologist at Duke Integrative Medicine and
Principal Investigator on the study. “Reducing stress can help
reduce the risk for associated health conditions and points to the
potential in helping reduce overall health care costs.”
Mindfulness at Work™ and Viniyoga Stress Reduction
Programs
Mindfulness at Work™ is a stress management program based upon
the principles and practices of mindfulness meditation. Developed
and offered by eMindful, the program teaches relatively brief (5-15
minutes) mindfulness practices that explicitly target work-related
stress and work-life balance, and are specifically designed to be
used at work.
The study analyzed the impact of the Mindfulness at Work™
program in two different settings with the same content. While one
group received in-person instruction, the other group accessed the
program through a virtual online classroom that used video, audio
and instant messaging chat. The study showed statistically
equivalent results between the online mindfulness classes and
in-person delivery, and retention was better in the online
classes.
The Viniyoga Stress Reduction program is a 12-week therapeutic
yoga-based program developed by American Viniyoga Institute founder
Gary Kraftsow. Participants received instruction for managing
stress including physical yoga postures, breathing techniques,
guided relaxation and mental skills. The classes also provided
coping strategies for dealing with stressful events and promoted
use of home and office strategies for reducing stress through yoga.
The program offered weekly in-person classes, home practice
handouts and yoga break handouts for home and office use.
The study participants included 239 Aetna employees in
California and Connecticut who volunteered for the two mind-body
stress reduction programs. As part of the studies, 96 employees
were randomly assigned to mindfulness-based classes, 90 were
randomly assigned to therapeutic yoga classes and 53 were randomly
assigned to the control group.
Since the study concluded in 2010, Aetna has expanded the
availability of the programs to all Aetna employees nationwide. In
addition, Aetna began implementing the mind-body stress reduction
programs with several customers and has received strong interest
from other customers in a wide range of sectors, including
financial services and health care service providers.
“We have seen first-hand how these mind-body programs have
helped our employees deal with stress more effectively and help
them achieve better overall health,” said Elease Wright, head of
Human Resources at Aetna. “We are excited to offer these programs
to more Aetna employees and are confident that our customers that
implement the mind-body programs will see similar results with
their employees and lower costs associated with stress.”
About Aetna
Aetna is one of the nation's leading diversified health care
benefits companies, serving approximately 36.4 million people with
information and resources to help them make better informed
decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of
traditional, voluntary and consumer-directed health insurance
products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental,
behavioral health, group life and disability plans, and medical
management capabilities and health care management services for
Medicaid plans. Our customers include employer groups, individuals,
college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans,
health care providers, governmental units, government-sponsored
plans, labor groups and expatriates. For more information, see
www.aetna.com.
About eMindful
eMindful, Inc. (www.eMindful.com) is the nation’s leading
evidence-based provider of live, online mind-body wellness
programs. Its courses are led by highly credentialed instructors
who deliver engaging curriculums in a virtual classroom to
participants around the world. With the ability of participants and
instructors to interact with each other in a real-time format the
resultant experience produces an effective and efficient means of
learning. eMindful, Inc. is based in Vero Beach, FL and has support
facilities throughout the United States.
About Duke Integrative Medicine
Duke Integrative Medicine is a portal to the vast spectrum of
scientific advances at Duke Medicine, and a gateway to patients’
optimal health and healing. The focus of patient care is on
cutting-edge medical research and evidence based complementary
therapies. Experts partner with patients -- providing treatments,
resources, time and support -- so they can address and plan for all
their health needs and goals. Duke Integrative Medicine also has
comprehensive programs that focus on Professional Education,
Research, and Medical Education. For more information, see
www.dukeintegrativemedicine.org.
About American Viniyoga Institute
American Viniyoga Institute (AVI) is an organization of yoga
practitioners and professionals sharing core values, guided by the
teachings of Viniyoga, and dedicated to offering quality
experiential educational and professional training opportunities in
the fields of health and fitness, therapy and self-care and
personal transformation. AVI (www.viniyoga.com) is a leader in the
United States in training advanced-level Viniyoga teachers and yoga
therapists.
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