Year: 2011
Type: article
Abstract: Lack of sleep has well established effects on physiological, cognitive and behavioural functionality. Sleep deprivation can adversely affect clinical performance as severely as alcohol according to some sources. Sleep deficiency may be due to loss of one night’s sleep or repeated interruptions of sleep. Chronic sleep degrades the ability to recognise one’s ability to recognise the impairments induced by sleep loss. The problem of sleep deprivation has vexed acute medical practice for decades. Improvement has been painfully slow. The problem is that all 168 hours throughout every week of every year have to be covered and there are a finite number of doctors to shoulder the burden. There are many strongly held views about how best to provide night-time and week-end care. Constructive innovations are thin on the ground. The biggest gap is between administration and doctors with financial considerations being the limiting factor. It is, however, generally accepted on all sides that sleep loss and fatigue can have adverse effects on both patients and doctors.
Source: PubMed
Author: J F A Murphy
Language: English
Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W1528519065