Making errors at work due to sleepiness or sleep problems is not confined to non-standard work hours: results of the 2016 Sleep Health Foundation national survey

'It's satisfying but destructive': A qualitative study on the experience of bedtime procrastination in new career starters

BACKGROUND

Bedtime procrastination, the volitional delay of going to bed without any external circumstances causing the delay, is linked to multiple indicators of inadequate sleep. Intervening to reduce bedtime procrastination may be an important avenue to improve sleep outcomes, yet the phenomenon remains poorly understood in populations at risk for bedtime procrastination. New career starters, those who have graduated from tertiary education and started a new full-time job within the past 12 months, may be susceptible to problematic bedtime procrastination and are at an opportune time for a 'fresh start' to change behaviour.

AIMS

The objectives of this study were to understand how bedtime procrastination is experienced and perceived by new career starters, to identify the enablers and barriers to behaviour change in new career starters and to explore themes for future interventions.

MATERIALS & METHODS

Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews with 28 participants.

RESULTS

Inductive thematic analysis was used to find seven themes: (1) negative feelings before and during bedtime procrastination; (2) wanting to versus knowing I shouldn't; (3) difficulty falling asleep; (4) influence of automatic processes; (5) consequences of bedtime procrastination; (6) lack of self-control and (7) technology captures late-night attention. Participants emphasised the need for me-time, self-negotiation to continue procrastinating and knowledge of the value of sleep.

DISCUSSION & CONCLUSION

Findings suggest that bedtime procrastination involves both reflective and automatic cognitive processes. Future interventions would benefit from a dual-process approach, using cognitive and behavioural techniques to reduce bedtime procrastination.

Shift work disorder and the prevalence of help seeking behaviors for sleep concerns in Australia: A descriptive study

Shift work disorder (SWD) is a circadian rhythm sleep-wake disorder, defined by symptoms of insomnia and excessive levels of sleepiness resulting from work that occurs during non-standard hours. Sleep problems are common in shift workers, yet our understanding of help seeking behaviours for sleep in shift workers is limited. The primary aim of this study was to examine the help seeking behaviours of Australian workers who meet criteria for SWD. Of the 448 (46% of sample, n = 964 total) Australian workers reporting non-standard work hours, 10.5% (n = 41) met the criteria for probable shift work disorder (pSWD). Non-standard workers with pSWD did not seek help for sleep problems at higher rates than workers without SWD. Of the small proportion of workers with pSWD who sought help, general practitioners were the most common healthcare professionals for sleep problems. Self-management was common in workers with pSWD, with a high self-reported prevalence of alcohol use (31.7%) as a sleep management strategy, and caffeine consumption (76.9%) as a sleepiness management strategy. The majority of individuals with pSWD reported the mentality of 'accept it and keep going' as a sleepiness management strategy, highlighting a potential barrier to help seeking behaviour in workers with pSWD. These findings provide novel insight into the help seeking behaviours of those with pSWD. There is a need for further research to understand why individuals at risk for SWD are not actively seeking help, and to develop health promotion and intervention strategies to improve help seeking when needed.

Prevalence of Probable Shift Work Disorder in Non-Standard Work Schedules and Associations with Sleep, Health and Safety Outcomes: A Cross-Sectional Analysis

PURPOSE

We aimed to estimate the prevalence of probable shift work disorder (pSWD) in a representative sample of Australian workers and identify sleep, health and safety correlates.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

In 2019, data were collected from working respondents as part of a cross-sectional national sleep health survey conducted online (n=964 total; n=448 individuals on non-standard work schedules). We established the prevalence of pSWD according to International Classification of Sleep Disorders criteria (ICSD-R, ICSD-2 and ICSD-3). Poisson regression was used to determine crude and adjusted prevalence association (prevalence ratio, PR) of pSWD with sleep, health and safety outcomes.

RESULTS

Overall prevalence of pSWD in workers on non-standard work schedules was 10.5%, ranging from 9.6% in early morning workers to 12.7% in rotating shift workers. In adjusted models, workers who met the criteria for pSWD were 1.8 times more likely to report both depression/bipolar disorder, and anxiety/panic disorder, and 1.7 times more likely to report work errors due to a sleep problem.

CONCLUSION

The prevalence of pSWD in employees engaged in non-standard work schedules is influenced by selection of factors used to quantify pSWD, including sleep/wake patterns. Higher likelihoods of mental health problems and workplace errors in those with pSWD highlight the importance of intervention and management of this under-recognised sleep disorder.

The association of smart mobile phone usage with cognitive function impairment in Saudi adult population

Background & Objectives:

Excessive use of mobile phones has raised a great concern about adverse health effects on human health. The present study’s aim was to investigate the association of the usage of smartphones with cognitive function impairment in the Saudi adult population.

Methods:

The present cross-sectional study was conducted in the Department of Physiology, College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia during September 2019 to January 2020. A total of 251 Saudi adults who were using mobile phones were recruited, and knowledge, attitude and practices were assessed by interview using a predesigned proforma. The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MOCA) tool was employed to assess the cognitive functions, comparison was made between daily mobile phone usage group and their correlated Montreal Cognitive Score (MOCA).

Results:

The mean age for 251 Saudi adult participants was 32.43 ± 12.8 years. More than 80% of the participants used their mobile phone for more than two hours daily. About 61% of the participants were not aware of the side effect of the radiation generated from mobile phone. The participants showed a decrease in MOCA score with increased daily mobile phone usage (MOCA=26.8 for <1 hour daily usage, 26.1 for 1-2 hours, and 24.6 for >2 hours with P< 0.05). In addition, participants showed decreased MOCA score by keeping their mobile phone near their pillow while sleeping; MOCA=24.35 for near pillow groups and >25.5 for the groups that placed their mobile phone away from the pillow.

Conclusions:

Excessive use of mobile phones can cause cognitive function impairment. Strict policies must be implemented to control the use of smartphones in order to minimize the effects on mobile phone radiation on cognition. The media has to be on the forefront in educating the public about the proper usage of mobile phones.

Sensors Capabilities, Performance, and Use of Consumer Sleep Technology

Sleep is crucial for the proper functioning of bodily systems and for cognitive and emotional processing. Evidence indicates that sleep is vital for health, well-being, mood, and performance. Consumer sleep technologies (CSTs), such as multisensory wearable devices, have brought attention to sleep and there is growing interest in using CSTs in research and clinical applications. This article reviews how CSTs can process information about sleep, physiology, and environment. The growing number of sensors in wearable devices and the meaning of the data collected are reviewed. CSTs have the potential to provide opportunities to measure sleep and sleep-related physiology on a large scale.

Waking to use technology at night, and associations with driving and work outcomes: a screenshot of Australian adults

The use of smartphones/electronic devices and their relationship with outcomes are understudied in adult populations. We determined daytime functional correlates of using technology during the night in a population sample of Australian adults. A cross-sectional, national online survey of sleep health was conducted in 2019 (n = 1984, 18–90 years). Nocturnal technology use was assessed with: “In the past seven days, how often did you wake or were woken to send or receive text messages, emails or other electronic communications?” Waking to use technology during all/most nights was reported by 4.9%, with 13.8% reporting two to three nights per week, and 12.7% reporting just one night per week. Technology users were more likely to be younger, employed, experience financial stress, and speak English as a second language. In adjusted analyses, compared to no use, technology use at least two to three nights per week was significantly associated with daytime problems (sleepiness, fatigue and impaired mood, motivation, and attention) and was more evident in participants not reporting/perceiving a sleep problem. Technology use was independently associated with at least one drowsy driving-related motor vehicle accidents/near miss per month (odds ratio [OR] = 6.4, 95% CI = 3.8 to 10.7) and with missing work (OR = 4.8, 95% CI: 3.2 to 7.2) and making errors at work (OR = 2.2, 95% CI = 1.5 to 3.3) at least 1 day in the past 3 months due to sleepiness/sleep problem. These associations were not significantly modified by age. Public health implications of waking to engage with electronic devices at night may be significant in terms of safety, productivity, and well-being. Limiting sleep-disrupting technology use will require innovative language-diverse strategies targeted broadly across age groups.

Occupational Outcomes Associated with Sleep Quality and Excessive Daytime Sleepiness: Results from a National Survey

INTRODUCTION

There are few population-level studies of the interactions between sleep quality/excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) and occupational behavior. Here, we investigated the impact of sleep quality and EDS on occupational outcomes in a population-wide survey of adults in Saudi Arabia.

METHODS

A population-wide survey was administered to Saudi Arabian adults to assess sleep quality, EDS was measured using the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), and sleep-related absenteeism, sleep-related errors at work, and falling asleep at work in the preceding three months. Associations were evaluated using univariate analyses and binary logistic regression.

RESULTS

A total of 10,106 individuals completed all or part of the survey, of whom 8617 (85.3%) were employed. Of these, 28.7% and 8.8% of respondents reported "fairly bad" or "very bad" sleep quality in the preceding month. In binary logistic regression models, taking sleep medications was associated with absenteeism (odds ratio (OR) 1.92, 95% confidence intervals (CI) 1.67-2.22; p<0.001) and making errors at work (OR 1.89, 95% CI 1.62-2.20; p<0.001) but not falling asleep at work, and poor subjective sleep quality was associated with falling asleep at work (ORs 1.55, 95% CI 1.38-1.74; p<0.001). Severe EDS (ESS ≥16) was strongly associated with falling asleep at work (OR 3.39, 95% CI 2.51-4.48; p<0.001). Parameters associated with absenteeism, errors, and falling asleep at work were similar in blue- and white-collar workers.

DISCUSSION

This first population-wide study of sleep quality and EDS in Saudi Arabia provides a comprehensive portrait of the prevalence of sleep problems and their effects on occupational outcomes. Sleep-related absenteeism, work errors, and sleeping at work are common, mandating tailored fatigue-reduction strategies in every workplace and reinvigoration of public health messages on sleep.

The Economic Burden of Sleepy Driving

Driving while sleepy on a regular basis may be due to sleep restriction associated with work schedules or with poor sleep hygiene. It also may be associated with sleep disorders or with sedative drugs. This review assesses the potential consequences of driving sleepy on a regular basis from a societal point of view. Driving while sleepy on a regular basis increases the risk of motor vehicle accidents (MVAs), impairs the ability to work, has an impact on productivity, and probably also has an impact on the risk of non-MVA occupational accidents and on public disasters.