Yoga for Burnout in Nurses: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Nurses often experience significant physical and psychological stress, leading to various individual, familial, social, and organizational issues that predispose them to burnout. Burnout has detrimental effects on the health and well-being of nurses. This systematic review and meta-analysis estimates the effectiveness of yoga on burnout among nurses. Four electronic databases – PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature were systematically searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that evaluated the effect of yoga on burnout among nurses. The preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses guidelines were utilized. A total of 88 studies were screened, and 3 RCTs were retained for the meta-analysis. The standardized mean differences (SMDs) were estimated using a random and fixed-effect model with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). There was a significant effect of yoga on three components of burnout: emotional exhaustion (SMD −0.71; 95% CI −1.27–−0.15 [ P < 0.01]), depersonalization (SMD −0.59; 95% CI −0.88– –0.30 [ P < 0.01]), and personal achievement (SMD 0.76; 95% CI 0.26–1.25 [ P < 0.01]). Moreover, the research studies showed high heterogeneity ( I 2 = 0%–72%), and of the 3 trials, 2 were considered to be at low risk based on the Cochrane risk of bias 2 tool. Therefore, yoga is an effective and economical method that nurses can use to reduce burnout and improve the quality of care provided to patients. Integration of yoga-based practices into the healthcare routine has promising benefits, but more substantial findings are essential for developing evidence-based guidelines (International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews registration: CRD42024591915).