The Efficacy of Aromatherapy on Well‐Being and Stress

ABSTRACT Background Reduced quality in patient care is associated with impaired mental health among healthcare professionals. Hospital staff experience intense stress and are at high risk of burnout. Aims The study aimed to demonstrate whether inhaling essential oils using sticks improved the well‐being of healthcare professionals working in the emergency, intensive care, anaesthesia and operating theatre departments of our hospital. The effects of aromatherapy on stress and anxiety were also studied. Study Design This randomised, single‐centre, crossover study was open‐label. Healthcare professionals were given a mixture of essential oils to inhale in stick form (sweet orange, lavender, marjoram and ylang ylang) for 2 months, starting either immediately or after a 2‐month control period without essential oils. The order was determined by randomisation. The primary outcome was the WHO‐5 well‐being index, ranging from 0 to 100. Results A total of 51 participants were randomised, 49 of whom were retained for analysis. Twenty‐six professionals received aromatherapy for 2 months immediately after randomisation, followed by a 2‐month period without essential oils, while the remaining 23 participants started with a 2‐month control period with no intervention. The WHO‐5 well‐being score, expressed as the least‐square mean ± standard error, was significantly increased after the aromatherapy period compared to the control period (65.9 ± 1.8 vs. 60.4 ± 1.8, p ‐value = 0.0142). There was also a significant reduction in the general anxiety and perceived stress scores. Conclusions Aromatherapy could be an interesting way of improving the well‐being of healthcare professionals, reducing their anxiety and perceived stress levels. Relevance to Clinical Practice The complementary use of aromatherapy, an inexpensive method, seems promising but needs to be confirmed by larger scale studies with a robust methodology. Trial Registration: The protocol was registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05373849) on 4 May 2022