A 4-Minute Mindful Pain Management Intervention Delivered in an X-Ray Waiting Room Decreased Patients’ Pain: Results from a Randomized Controlled Trial

Idle gaps exist in many medical care pathways that could be leveraged for therapeutic benefit. Time in the clinic waiting room is one such example. With brief mindfulness interventions capable of quickly decreasing clinical symptoms, embedding a brief mindfulness intervention in a clinic waiting room has the potential to transform idle time into time for healing. The purpose of this single-site, two-arm, randomized controlled trial was to examine whether a 4-minute, audio-recorded, mindful pain management intervention could decrease patients’ pain and anxiety while waiting for an x-ray in an orthopedic walk-in clinic. Over 2 weeks, 173 patients were invited to participate in this study; 85 (49%) agreed to participate and 88 (51%) declined. The primary reason for declining was a lack of interest in participating (e.g., rather read their book). The average participant age was 55.6 years (range 18 to 84). Most participants were White (81%) and female (75%). Of the 85 participants who agreed to participate, 65 were able to listen to the entire pain management recording before being taken for their x-ray. Repeated Measures ANOVA indicated the 4-minute mindful pain management recording significantly decreased pain intensity (partial eta2=.090) and pain unpleasantness (partial eta2=.080) relative to the 4-minute pain psychoeducation recording. Listening to either recording significantly decreased anxiety (partial eta2=.095). Thus, a brief, audio-recorded mindfulness intervention has the potential to help patients waiting for an x-ray feel better. Now, strategies for increasing patient engagement and implementing this effective strategy in more diverse communities are needed.