Improving Doctors' Working Lives

A recent survey by Baldwin & Daugherty, reported by Psychiatric News, confirms that US residents are still struggling to get enough rest - and more significantly, it supports the link between sleep deprivation and medical error. According to PN, "Residents who got less sleep were nearly twice as likely to report they had made a significant medical error, been named in a malpractice suit, had a serious accident or injury, or had a serious conflict with other residents, attendings, or nursing staff." A validated study hopes to show whether these results are statistically significant later this year.

Anoter survey of resident physicians by Kingman Strohl also found the following:
"Residents make different choices about how to spend unscheduled time" - decreased working hours did not automatically translate into more sleep;
Lack of sleep leads to objectification of patients and "feelings of detachment from everyday life";
Residents reported that their driving also suffered when they had less sleep.

Dr Baldwin also recommended the use of napping, stating "As little as 20 minutes of sleep can rejuvenate a person for several hours". The debate continues...
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