Long Working Hours & Work Schedule
Research Areas:
The relationship between work schedules and health and safety is complex and is influenced by characteristics of the work schedule (time of shift, direction and speed of rotation, pattern of days off, shift length, rest breaks), as well as characteristics of the job, the worker, and the work environment (Barton, et al. 1995). Long work hours may reduce the time available for sleep, leading to sleep deprivation or disturbed sleep and incomplete recovery from work (Sparks, et al., 1997; Spurgeon, et al., 1997; van der Hulst, 2003). This may adversely affect nervous, cardiovascular, metabolic, and immune functioning. Family and social contacts may also be reduced, which in turn may lead to physiological responses associated with stress.
Long hours may also increase exposure times to workplace hazards such as chemicals, infectious agents, and physical, mental, emotional demands. Long hours also may reduce time available for exercise or nutritious meals, and added job stress can increase smoking, alcohol and caffeine use. Determining the number of work hours critically associated with risk for a specific job would require examining how extended hours interact with other factors contributing to fatigue, such as work load, competing responsibilities, and opportunities for rest and recovery.
Grants:
“Sleep loss, sleepiness and neurocognition in 12-hour nurses” Pilot Study (DRIF), 2005-2008 to 9/1/07-8/31/09, CDC/NIOSH. This study examines the impact of long working hours on sleep loss and cognitive functioning in nurses working extended 12 hour shifts in an acute care setting. (PI) Jeanne Geiger Brown, Co-investigators: Alison Trinkoff, Steven Scharf, Robert Kane (R21-OH008392)
“NIOSH Long Hours – NORA Team Workshop,” contract August 21, 2003 – December 31, 2004, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. This was a collaborative project between the WHRC and the NIOSH NORA task force on long working hours which resulted in a national conference on long working hours and health. (http://nursing.umaryland.edu/events/archives/longworkhours/index.html)
Extended Work Schedules and Workplace Injury in Nurses 110/01/01-9/30/05, CDC/NIOSH, The major objective of this project is to investigate the relationship between extended work schedules, musculoskeletal pain/disorders and needlestick injuries via a longitudinal mailed survey of registered nurses. (PI) A. Trinkoff, Co-investigators: Jeanne Geiger-Brown, Carles Muntaner, Jane Lipscomb. (R01 OH007554-01)
Publications:
Johnson, J.V., Lipscomb, J. Long Working Hours, Occupational Health, and the Changing Nature of Work Organization. American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 49: 921-929, 2006.
Trinkoff, A., Geiger-Brown, J., Caruso, C.C., Lipscomb, J., Johantgen, M., Nelson, A. Personal Safety for Nurses. (Invited and peer-reviewed). Chapter 26 in: Ronda Hughes, R., (Ed.) Advances in Patient Safety & Quality – an Evidence-based Handbook for Nurses. Published by Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Forthcoming, 2007.
Trinkoff, A.M., Le, R., Geiger-Brown, J., Lipscomb, J. A. Work schedule, needle use, and needlestick injuries in registered nurses. Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, 28:156-164, 2007.
Trinkoff, A.M., Geiger-Brown, J., Brady B., Lipscomb, J.A., Muntaner, C. How long and how much are nurses now working? American Journal of Nursing, 106 (4), 60-71, 2006. (Also: continuing education module: p. 72.)
Trinkoff, A., Le, R., Geiger-Brown, J., Lipscomb, J., Lang, G. The longitudinal relationship of long work hours and mandatory overtime to MSD in Nurses. American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 49:964-971, 2006.
Geiger-Brown, J., Muntaner, C., Lipscomb, J., Trinkoff, A. Demanding work schedules and mental health in nursing assistants working in nursing homes, Work and Stress, 18(4): 292-304, 2004.
Lipscomb, J., Trinkoff, A.M., Geiger-Brown, J., Brady, B. Work schedule and musculoskeletal problems in nurses. Scandinavian Journal of Work and Environmental Health, 28: 394-401, 2002.
Trinkoff, A.M., Storr, C.L., Lipscomb, J.A. Physically demanding work and inadequate sleep, pain medication use, and absenteeism in registered nurses. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 43(4), 355-363, 2001.
Trinkoff, A. M. & Storr, C. L. Work schedule characteristics and substance use among nurses. American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 34:266-271, 1998.
Lee, K.A., Lipscomb, J.A., Assessing sleep in shift workers must become a priority for clinical practice and research in occupational health nursing. AAOHN Journal, 51, 223-224, 2003.