Effects of personality traits on mindful self-care practices of healthcare workers

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) placed healthcare professionals (HCPs) at a higher risk for stress-related conditions. Implementing a brief online mindfulness-based intervention (MBI) was hypothesised to transform the HCPs’ ability to cope with stress by enhancing their self-care. AIM: This study aimed to explore the impact of an online MBI on HCPs’ self-care practices and determine if personality traits were a moderating variable. SETTING: An online MBI was implemented for HCPs working in South Africa during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. METHODS: A quantitative study design included a pre-assessment and post-assessment component, which allowed paired comparison and regression analysis to confer correlations. Data were collected via two validated instruments: the Mindful Self-Care scale-2018 and the Big Five Personality test. RESULTS: Forty-nine HCPs participated in the study. Significant improvements were found in all the major self-care subscales post-intervention (p < 0.05). No significant associations were found between the personality traits and self-care except for neuroticism, which appeared to be an essential moderating variable. CONCLUSION: An online MBI significantly impacted health professionals’ ability to care for themselves, despite their personality styles. CONTRIBUTION: The impact of an online MBI on HCPs’ self-care during the most intense time of stress and with a cohort of people known to be the most vulnerable to stress, namely those with neuroticism to date, has not been commented on.