Work

Declining Sleep Quality among Nurses: A Population-Based Four-Year Longitudinal Study on the Transition from Nursing Education to Working Life

Year: 2010

Type: article

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Several studies have established impaired sleep is a common problem among nurses. Overworked, fatigued and stressed nurses are at a higher risk of making mistakes that threaten patient safety as well as their own health. The aim of the present study was to longitudinally monitor the development of sleep quality in nurses, starting from the last semester at the university, with three subsequent annual follow-ups once the nurses had entered working life. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Nationwide, longitudinal questionnaire study of nursing students and newly qualified nurses in Sweden. The results imply a continuous decline in sleep quality among nurses during the three years of follow-up, starting from their last semester of nursing education and continuing for three years into their working life. The most pronounced short-term decline in sleep quality seems to occur in the transition between student life and working life. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: This finding is important since it may affect the quality of care and the health of nurses negatively.

Source: PLoS ONE

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0014265

Authors: Dan Hasson, Petter Gustavsson

Institutions: Stockholm University, Karolinska Institutet

Language: English

Topic: Sleep and Work-Related Fatigue

Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Good health and well-being, Decent work and economic growth

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,382