Table 5 Barriers and facilitators defined as themes and subthemes as derived from codes that arose from the qualitative interviews
From: Effectiveness and feasibility of a mindful leadership course for medical specialists: a pilot study
Main themes | Subthemes | Example quotes |
|---|---|---|
1. Level of perceived benefit and appreciation of course contents | Facilitator subthemes Perceived benefit/ appreciation of | |
 • Formal practice | No.13: But then I was incredibly motivated! And I read everything, prepared everything, and did all of the exercises. And I thought it was very rewarding each time. | |
 • Informal practice and practical application | No.14: When I start or change an activity, the short two-, three-, four-minute body scan (...). Just taking a moment to sit still and listen to your body, your surroundings, or your breathing. That really helped me to get closure; to let go, or whatever you want to call it. And to prepare for what’s to come; to keep an open mind and think about what I’ll do next. | |
 • Combination mindfulness with leadership, CBT, compassion | No. 3: ...It’s kind of a two-part course: mindfulness on the one hand and leadership aspects on the other and ... that combination really appealed to me.... I wouldn’t have done just mindfulness, but the combination was really good... | |
 • Group setting, sharing with colleagues, common humanity | No. 6: I also liked being around like-minded people... That almost everyone... worked at Radboud, is roughly the same age, has a similar background and... struggles with the same day-to-day things and patient care. The daily grind, so to speak. So that created a... a kind of atmosphere of trust, which I really enjoyed and found useful | |
Barrier subthemes No perceived benefit/appreciation of | ||
 • Formal practice | No. 6: No, so that sitting on a stool... that’s one way... but that’s going a step too far and something you really don’t feel like doing. So no, not me. No. 24: ... Slowly... no, I thought it was fine, but yeah, you just lie there on your back and tense and relax your muscles, and in a group setting... that didn’t really do much for me. | |
 • Leadership component | No. 4: So I was really enthusiastic about the first part of the course [mindfulness], and not so much about the second [leadership]. | |
2. Ability and willingness to spend time | Facilitator subthemes | |
 • Motivation / need | No. 5: Well because I thought: this is really important for me right now, and I wasn’t going to get there, no matter how hard I worked, because in the end that was exactly what I... with that never stopping.... it wouldn’t have gotten any better, despite how hard I was trying. So I thought: I’ve got to do this for myself and this should help. So I was extremely motivated. | |
 • Flexibility working hours, no full time work (yet) | No. 17: It was definitely feasible in that sense. I mean, it’s a serious time investment, of course, but I had the luxury of being in a kind of reintegration process at the time. And I was doing modified work, which made this easy to fit in. | |
 • Integrating homework in daily life | No. 5: ...I’ve become much more conscious in between... during my shifts... of bringing an apple or something with me, and taking a moment like halfway through to catch a break... because we don’t really have real break times, but to take a moment to sit down and eat... | |
 • Practicalities | No. 6: The impact, that is real, because it took so long, I think that it has a real impact... | |
Barrier subthemes | ||
 • No need or benefit | No. 12: ...But I didn’t really feel the need and therefore didn’t really notice a difference. I’m a really happy person and ... I don’t have a lot of free time. I have small children at home and I have a job here that never really stops, that is, you know if that’s what you would want..... and if there is anything that is inconvenient, well investing so much time in.... inner peace... I just never felt like I had a problem for which this would be the solution. | |
 • Limited time due to working more than full time | ||
 • Other priorities – children | ||
 • Practicalities – time/time on the day | No. 3: Anyway, it’s tricky if you keep having to ask colleagues to take over your tasks. No. 5: I found it INCREDIBLY stressful... I think we started at 3 and I’d worked in the polyclinic from 8 to about 2... and with no chance to eat, and then I still had a lot to do before the weekend and so... before I could get there.... so I thought that was stressful.... but once I was there, I enjoyed it. | |