On average, humans need 8 hours of sleep during a 24-hour period. With less than 5 hours of sleep within that 24-hour period, residents are more likely to report:1
-
Serious accidents or injuries
-
Conflict with other professional staff
-
Use of alcohol
-
Use of medications to stay awake
-
Noticeable weight change
-
Working in an "impaired condition"
-
Significant medical errors
Commonly experienced sleep deprivation depresses performance to a level equivalent to that produced by alcohol intoxication of at least a blood alcohol content of 0.05%.2
Fatigue has been found to cause3:
-
disruptions in everyday function, including psychosocial distress
-
decreased cognitive performance
-
increased risk-taking behavior, and
-
inappropriate decision making.
Research has shown that baseline cognitive function may be decreased by 25% after one night of no sleep and by as much as 40% after a 2nd night of no sleep.4 After several nights of 5-hour sleep periods, most adults will not realize that they are pathologically sleepy and that is why it is so important that faculty can identify the signs and symptoms of fatigue in residents.
Studies using the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), an assessment tool widely used by sleep professionals, evaluated the effects of of sleep deprivation on residents.5
-
149 residents at five U.S. academic health centers in six specialties described multiple adverse effects of sleep loss and fatigue on learning, job performance, and professionalism.
-
Only 16% scored within the normal range on the ESS
84% scored within the range indicating a need for clinical intervention.