The Tapping Evidence Base
Burnout & Work Stress · Stress & Cortisol

Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) Tapping for Pediatric Emergency Department Staff During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evaluation of a Pilot Intervention

Bifano, S., Szeglin, C., Garbers, S., Gold, M. · Medical Acupuncture · 2024

Outcome studyPreliminary✓ Source-checked📍 United States
In plain English. Pediatric ER staff during the COVID-19 pandemic did a single 10-minute EFT tapping session led by a creative arts therapist, and reported feeling less stressed, less preoccupied by intrusive thoughts, and less lonely right afterward. This is a single-arm, single-session pilot without a control group, so the immediate improvement can't be separated from simply taking a break or the passage of time.

What they found

Statistically significant reductions were found for 6 of 7 items studied, including stress (3.32 to 2.14), intrusive thoughts (2.50 to 1.85), feelings of pressure (3.20 to 2.17), loneliness, and emotional/physical pain (all P<0.001); professional satisfaction did not change significantly.

How the study worked

Who took partdiverse staff of a pediatric emergency department at a New York City teaching hospital
What they didParticipants received tapping and were measured before and after, without a separate comparison group.
Measured with7-item Trauma Exposure Response-based self-report questionnaire

💡 Where this could help

If findings like these hold up in larger trials, the promise is simple: a low-cost, self-administered tool that could reach people struggling with burnout & work stress who can't easily access traditional care — at home, between appointments, or where there aren't enough clinicians to go around.

🔬 What to study next

The natural next step: a head-to-head trial against an established treatment like CBT, and a randomized controlled design.

The full record

DesignOutcome study
Populationdiverse staff of a pediatric emergency department at a New York City teaching hospital
Outcome measures7-item Trauma Exposure Response-based self-report questionnaire
JournalMedical Acupuncture
Year2024
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
MethodEFT / tapping
Publication typeStudy / trial
Verification✓ Confirmed against the primary source

Read the original study →

Cite this study

APA

Bifano, S., Szeglin, C., Garbers, S., & Gold, M. (2024). Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) Tapping for Pediatric Emergency Department Staff During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evaluation of a Pilot Intervention. Medical Acupuncture. https://doi.org/10.1089/acu.2023.0099

This record is part of the Tapping Evidence Base — an openly-sourced, fully-referenced directory of the research on EFT/tapping. Explore more studies on Burnout & Work Stress · Stress & Cortisol

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THE TAPPING EVIDENCE BASE Burnout & Work Stress ✓ Outcome study WHAT THEY FOUND Statistically significant reductions werefound for 6 of 7 items studied, includingstress (3.32 to 2.14), intrusive… Outcome study Bifano · 2024 · evidence.thetappingsolution.com