Effect of Therapeutic Touch on Burnout and Well-Being in Midwives

Background: Midwifery is a health discipline characterized by heavy workload and stressful clinical situations that require high levels of physical, emotional, and cognitive effort. Prolonged exposure to chronic stressors can lead to burnout, which negatively affects both the quality of midwifery care and midwives' general well-being. Therapeutic Touch (TT) is a non-invasive energy-field intervention aimed at balancing the individual's energy field. Evidence suggests that TT may reduce stress and anxiety, promote relaxation, and enhance overall well-being; however, studies directly examining its effect on the stress, burnout, and well-being of clinically working midwives are limited.

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of Therapeutic Touch in reducing burnout and improving general well-being among midwives working in a clinical setting.

Design: Single-center, single-blind, pretest-posttest, three-arm, randomized controlled experimental trial. The three arms are: (1) intervention group receiving Therapeutic Touch, (2) placebo/sham group, and (3) no-intervention control group.

Setting and Participants: The study population consists of midwives actively working at Elazig Fethi Sekin City Hospital.

Sample Size: The sample size will be calculated using G*Power 3.1.9.7 based on comparable studies, with a Type I error (alpha) of 0.05, power (1-beta) of 0.80, and the anticipated effect size. To account for possible dropouts, the sample size will be increased by 15-20%.

Randomization and Blinding: Participants will be allocated to groups using block randomization or a computer-generated random number table. The trial is single-blind (outcome assessor blinded to group allocation).

Intervention Period: The intervention is delivered over a 4-week period.

Data Collection Tools: (1) Personal Information Form covering sociodemographic and occupational characteristics; (2) Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI): a 22-item, 5-point Likert scale with three subscales (emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment); (3) Psychological Well-Being Scale (PWB, Diener flourishing short form): an 8-item, 7-point Likert scale.

Withdrawal Criterion: Voluntary withdrawal from the study during the 4-week intervention period.

Statistical Analysis: Data will be analyzed with SPSS. After assessing distribution, descriptive statistics will be reported and between-group and within-group comparisons of the pretest and posttest scores will be performed using appropriate statistical tests for a three-arm randomized design. Statistical significance will be set at p < 0.05.

Inclusion criteria

• Aged 18-65 years
• Actively practicing midwifery in the field/clinic for at least one year
• No prior energy therapy (Reiki, healing touch, Therapeutic Touch)
• Literate and willing to volunteer for the study
• Open to communication and cooperation

Exclusion criteria

• Currently being followed for a psychiatric diagnosis
• Currently using antidepressant, anxiolytic, or sleep-regulating medication
• Having touch sensitivity or a phobia-level aversion to being touched