Poor sleep can harm well-being – it’s been shown to be a strong risk factor for cognitive decline and early mortality. I am an expert in sleep and stress among middle-aged adults in the workplace, and my research has found that work-related stress influences sleep quantity and quality. And not only that – poor sleep may increase the risk of adverse health outcomes for both healthcare workers and their patients. Sleep issues are more prevalent in healthcare workers compared to workers in other industries. A CDC report on 2013-2014 data on 22 major occupation groups found health care support workers and practitioners had the second and third highest levels of short sleep duration – defined as less than seven hours – with 40% of these workers reporting short sleep Sleep loss in health care workers also manifests in different forms. My collaborative research team compared the sleep quality of 1,220 direct-care workers with 637 IT office employees using both self-report and sleep actigraphy assessments, which is a method that objectively quantifies sleep and wake patterns based on movement. We found that over 60% of both groups experienced at least one sleep issue over the past month, such as sleep insufficiency, short sleep duration, or more nighttime waking. However, direct-care workers had poorer sleep characteristics across multiple sleep dimensions that are critical for optimal functioning and health. These include regularity, satisfaction, alertness, timing, efficiency, and duration. Sleep loss doesn’t just hurt patients – it harms healthcare workers, too. Many studies have found chronic sleep loss to increase the risk of several conditions, including musculoskeletal injury, obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Nurses working rotating night shifts for over 15 years are 1.79 times and 1.35 times at risk of developing breast and colorectal cancer, respectively. It’s clear that the unique work conditions of healthcare workers, like nonstandard hours, proximity to life-threatening diseases, and reduced autonomy, may make them more vulnerable to sleep problems. Other factors like frequent interruptions during on-call sleep periods or shift work disruptions to normal sleep patterns can further exacerbate problems by fragmenting sleep. Sleep is not just a personal issue. Many social and cultural factors directly impact sleep quality – and for healthcare workers, it’s clear that their work environment is not conducive to healthy sleep. Healthcare workers need sufficient sleep to efficiently and effectively deliver high-quality patient care. The high prevalence of insomnia symptoms among providers not only has worrying implications for the well-being of our healthcare workers, but the well-being of our healthcare system as a whole.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!
Thursday, June 26, 2025