Kevin B. Gregory

The cost of poor sleep: workplace productivity loss and associated costs.

Objective: To assess the impact of sleep disturbances on work performance/productivity. Methods: Employees (N = 4188) at four US corporations were surveyed about sleep patterns and completed the Work Limitations Questionnaire. Respondents were classified into four categories: insomnia, insufficient sleep syndrome, at-risk, and good sleep. Employer costs related to productivity changes were estimated through the Work Limitations Questionnaire. Performance/productivity, safety, and treatment measures were compared using a one-way analysis of variance model. Results: Compared with at-risk and good-sleep groups, insomnia and insufficient sleep syndrome groups had significantly worse productivity, performance, and safety outcomes. The insomnia group had the highest rate of sleep medication use. The other groups were more likely to use nonmedication treatments. Fatigue-related productivity losses were estimated to cost

FATIGUE IN OPERATIONAL SETTINGS: EXAMPLES FROM THE AVIATION ENVIRONMENT.

1967/employee annually. Conclusions: Sleep disturbances contribute to decreased employee productivity at a high cost to employers.

Managing Fatigue in Operational Settings 1: Physiological Considerations and Countermeasures

The need for 24-h operations creates nonstandard and altered work schedules that can lead to cumulative sleep loss and circadian disruption. These factors can lead to fatigue and sleepiness and affect performance and productivity on the job. The approach, research, and results of the NASA Ames Fatigue Countermeasures Program are described to illustrate one attempt to address these issues in the aviation environment. The scientific and operational relevance of these factors is discussed, and provocative issues for future research are presented.

Managing Fatigue in Operational Settings 2: An Integrated Approach

The authors consider three aspects of managing fatigue in the workplace. They provide a brief overview of important scientific findings related to sleep and circadian physiology that establish the psychobiological foundation of fatigue. Their major focus is on the relevance of these findings to operational settings. In addition, they provide examples to describe practical fatigue countermeasures that can be used in operational settings.

Alertness management: strategic naps in operational settings

The six domains that must be addressed in managing fatigue in operational settings are identified, and examples of how the aviation industry is dealing with the problems in each domain are given. Challenges facing healthcare providers in managing fatigue are also discussed.