Personalized Fatigue-Mitigation Lifestyle Coaching (PFMLC) to Improve Performance and Recovery Among Emergency Medicine Residents on Night Shifts
University of Massachusetts, Worcester
Summary
Emergency Medicine (EM) requires 24/7 staff coverage resulting in healthcare workers' circadian rhythm disruptions that impair clinical and cognitive performance, physical recovery, and contribute to burnout. Multiple well-being surveys continue to highlight EM's challenges with sleep impairment due to the nature of the specialty. Despite evidence that lifestyle strategies effectively optimize performance and recovery, EM residents have variable lifestyle choices to prepare for overnight shifts. This prospective randomized controlled trial will examine whether a pre-shift personalized fatigue-mitigation lifestyle coaching (PFMLC) for EM residents on overnight shifts minimizes the effects of circadian rhythm disruptions on performance and recovery compared to those who receive one-time passive information on lifestyle practices. All participants will receive lifestyle strategy materials on fatigue mitigation to improve performance. Residents' self-reported and biometric data will inform PFMLC in the active arm. Performance and recovery from night shifts will be assessed by changes in sleep, heart rate variability, readiness/recovery, alertness, cognitive performance, and mental health using Fitbit and validated measures.
Description
The investigators will use a block-randomized design utilizing each 28-day scheduling period as a block. Baseline characteristics and confounding factors such as gender, habitual diet, sleep, and caffeine intake will be collected on the first night of the study. Outcome measures will be assessed at the beginning of the shift and between the hours of 2:00 AM to 5:00 AM when sleep propensity and decreased alertness peak. Outcome measures include a) Stanford Sleepiness Scale (SSS): which takes about 15 seconds to complete. b) Work Exhaustion (4 questions overall): take 20 seconds to complete. c…
Eligibility
- Age range
- Not specified
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Yes
Inclusion Criteria: * emergency medicine resident * scheduled to work at least 4 overnight consecutive shifts Exclusion Criteria: * not willing to wear Fitbit device during the study * not willing to answer questionnaires * not willing to receive text messages during the study * not willing to meet with a lifestyle coach during the study * not willing t0 download app to their personal smartphone or residency-supplied smartphone
Interventions
- BehavioralPersonalized coaching
Personalized fatigue mitigation coaching.
- BehavioralNutrition handout
Nutrition handout
Location
- UMassMemorial Health CareWorcester, Massachusetts