NCT01988129

Fire Fighter Fatigue Management Program: Operation Healthy Sleep

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 1,189 (actual)
• Sponsor: Brigham and Women's Hospital · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

Firefighters work some of the most demanding schedules known under highly stressful and demanding conditions. The need to work frequent extended shifts and long work weeks leads to acute and chronic partial sleep deprivation as well as misalignment of circadian phase. Sleep disorders are common, costly, and treatable, but often remain undiagnosed and untreated and it is likely that a significant proportion of firefighters suffer from undiagnosed sleep disorders which will further impair their sleep and exacerbate fatigue.In the current proposal, we aim to address the health, performance and safety issues related to fatigue in firefighters and test the effectiveness of a Comprehensive Firefighter Fatigue Management Program (CFFMP) that we have termed 'Operation Healthy Sleep.'

Detailed description

We propose to use a station-level, randomized experimental design to test the hypotheses that implementation of a Comprehensive Firefighter Fatigue Management Program will: 1. improve the mean total sleep, alertness and cognitive performance of firefighters; 2. improve firefighter safety, as determined by: 1. decreased rates of motor vehicle crashes; 2. decreased on-the-job injuries; 3. improve firefighter performance, as determined by decreased response time; 4. improve firefighters' health, as determined by: 1. diagnosis and treatment of sleep disorders 2. improved general health indices 3. decreased number of 'sick' days 5. improve firefighters' and families' job satisfaction and ability to cope with extended work hours.

Conditions

• Shift-Work Sleep Disorder
• Insomnia
• Restless Leg Syndrome
• Obstructive Sleep Apnea
• Impaired Driving
• Injuries

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	Sleep disorders education and screening	Firefighters were instructed to attend an education presentation as operations allowed which provided information on firefighter mortality, fatigue-related health hazards and discussed the importance of sleep, and also included strategies to improve sleep hygiene and how to use caffeine and naps effectively to promote alertness. Firefighters were then invited to complete a voluntary sleep disorders screening survey. This survey used validated, self-report screening tools for obstructive sleep apnea, moderate to severe insomnia, restless legs syndrome and shift work disorder. All of those who screened positive for a high risk of any sleep disorder were notified by letter as to their risk and provided with contact information for a partnering sleep clinic if they chose to follow-up.

Timeline

• Start date: 2009-03-01
• Primary completion: 2013-09-01
• Completion: 2013-09-01
• First posted: 2013-11-20
• Last updated: 2017-03-16
• Results posted: 2015-07-29

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States