Sleepiness and Changes in Vital Signs among the Clinical Shift Working Staff

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Today, 24-hours work is an unavoidable component in several industries. Night-work is an imperative situation for an important part of workforces. Shift-working is called to work at hours out of usual day-work time (7:00 am to 6:00 pm). The present study was a cross sectional descriptive-analytic research, and was carried out in order to investigate sleepiness and changes in vital signs among the clinical shift workers staff at Imam Khomeini hospital in Ilam. Methods: Statistical population of the research was determined to be 79 persons, and data collection process was carried out in a simple random manner. Two questionnaires were used to collect data; a demographic questionnaire, and the Stanford Sleepiness Scale (SSS) questionnaire. A medical thermometer and one manometer were also used to gather data related to oral temperature and blood pressure. Potential relationship between sleepiness and demographic and professional factors was explored using Perason's correlation coeficient. Findings: Sleepiness was found to be significantly correlated with age, work experience, and Body Mass Index (BMI), and level of education (P < 0.05). In addition, sleepiness showed significant inverse correlations with body temperature and blood pressure (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Our results identified a number of important factors influencing sleepiness in clinicians. Considering these factors is of great importance when selecting staff for shift working, in order to enhance health care performance and prevent medication errors.