Auburn Research Day 2022

B i omed i ca l Resea rch | Med i ca l St udent Tiny Habits® For Gratitude - Implications For Healthcare Education Stakeholders

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Joshua C. Hollingsworth; Vandana Chaudhary Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant negative impact on many healthcare education stakeholders across the globe. For healthcare professionals, particularly those working on the frontlines, the pandemic brought about a significant increase in work demands, uncertainty regarding best treatment practices, emotional exhaustion from caring for severely ill patients and consoling families who have lost loved ones, and heightened concern regarding contracting and further spreading the disease themselves. The result for many has been diminished sleep and increased stress, anxiety, and burnout. Similar negative effects have been seen in health professions students. In addition to the negative impact on these groups themselves, their decreased wellbeing and increased burnout has negative implications for patient safety as well. One simple approach that may be helpful for many is to practice and cultivate gratitude. Higher levels of gratitude are associated with enhanced well-being and prosocial behavior, and systematic reviews and meta-analyses of randomized studies indicate that gratitude interventions provide modest but meaningful health and wellness benefits. To be a viable option for healthcare education stakeholders, simple, attractive, and effective gratitude-boosting interventions are needed. The Tiny Habits® Method is a simple approach to designing new behaviors into one’s existing routine. A randomized controlled study (n=154) was performed to assess changes in gratitude (primary outcome) in a Tiny Habits for Gratitude group (THG; n=50) as compared to a Tiny Habits control group (THC; n=52) and an inactive control group (IC; n=52). Participants in both Tiny Habits Groups practiced Tiny Habits Recipes and participated in a 5-day, email-based, semi-automated program, with guidance and feedback from Tiny Habits Coach. Gratitude, via

the Gratitude Questionnaire 6-Item (GQ-6), and hope, via the Adult Hope Scale (AHS) were assessed at baseline, post-intervention phase, and 1-month follow-up. Post-intervention, the median change in GQ-6 scores in the THG (Δ=+6; N=37/50, 74%; p=0.002) and in the THC (Δ=+6; N=31/52, 60%; p=0.012) were statistically significantly greater than that of the IC (Δ=+2.5; N=42/52, 81%). At 1 month, the median change in GQ-6 scores in the THG (Δ=+6; N=28/50, 56%) was statistically significantly greater than that of the IC (Δ=+4; N=23/52, 44%; p=0.02). As for AHS scores, the median change in the THG (Δ=+8; N=37/50, 74%; p=0.011) and in the THC (Δ=+8; N=31/52, 60%; p=0.036) were statistically significantly greater than that of the IC (Δ=+3; N=42/52, 81%) post-intervention. No other statistical differences were noted. These findings suggest that practicing Tiny Habits Recipes and participating in the Tiny Habits 5-Day Program can significantly increase hope and gratitude in the short term, and that focusing specifically on gratitude in the process can sustain the increase in gratitude for up to one month thereafter. Implementation of this intervention is quick and easy, and the 5-Day Program is free for all individuals who wish to take part. This has significant implications for healthcare education stakeholders, especially now.

B i omed i ca l Resea rch | Gr adua te/Undergr adua te St udent Investigating the Potential Therapeutic Efficacy of Oroxylum Indicum

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Payton Lowery 1* , Jack Deruiter 1 , Suhrud Pathak 1 , Sindhu Ramesh 1 , Timothy Moore 1 , Muralikrishnan Dhanasekaran 1 Department of Drug Discovery and Development, Harrison School of Pharmacy, Auburn University

For centuries, humans have consumed plants and plant-derived products, referred to as botanicals, for medicinal purposes. Oroxylum indicum has been used in Asia and throughout the world for centuries to treat various diseases. Baicalein is the most abundant bioactive constituent found in this plant. Additionally, the phytochemicals in Oroxylum indicum include phenols, saponins, flavonoids, tannins, alkaloids, fats, oils, terpenoids, lignins, etc glycosides. Moreover, pharmacologically active phytochemicals

isolated from the seeds in the plant include oroxin A, oroxin B, baicalein, scutellarin, chrysin, kaempferol, quercetin, zarzissine, and cholest-5-ene-3, 7-diol.

37 2022 Via Research Recognit ion Day