Association of sleep disturbance with shift work, occupational stress, and musculoskeletal pain in Chinese public hospital emergency workers: A multicentre cross-sectional study

ABSTRACT

Poor sleep, which is reportedly prevalent among healthcare professionals, could lead to various detrimental consequences. This study aimed to investigate the sleep quality of individuals working in emergency departments of public hospitals in China and explore the potential factors influencing sleep disturbance. A self-administered questionnaire was completed by 7688 emergency workers from 147 public hospitals in Shandong, China. Log-binomial regression analysis was performed to explore the relationship of sleep disturbance with possible influencing factors, including individual and work characteristics, occupational stress, shift work, and musculoskeletal pain. The participants’ mean Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index score was 9.6 ± 4.8, with 5341 (69.5%, 68.2–70.7%) of them experiencing sleep disturbance. The sleep quality was poorer in doctors (10.2 ± 5.1, 71.0%, 69.0–73.0%) than in nurses (9.2 ± 4.5, 68.6%, 67.0–70.1%), and poorer in those working in secondary (9.9 ± 4.5, 70.2%, 68.0–72.3%) and tertiary (12.2 ± 4.9, 77.5%, 75.3–79.7%) hospitals than in primary hospitals (8.0 ± 4.1, 64.6%, 62.6–66.6%). High prevalence of sleep disturbance was significantly associated with shift work, occupational stress, musculoskeletal pain, fewer breaks in a work shift, and less exercise during leisure time, after adjusting for confounding variables. Sleep disturbance occurred in emergency workers in the following order: two-shift rotation > three-shift rotation > permanent night shift > permanent day shift. Emergency workers in public hospitals in China had poor sleep quality and commonly experienced musculoskeletal pain. Urgent and comprehensive measures are needed to combat these issues.

KEYWORDS:

• Healthcare professional
• occupational medicine
• prevention
• risk factor
• emergency physician

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank all the participants. This study was supported by Shouguang People’s Hospital and the Health Commission of Weifang City.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Author contributions

Conceptualization and design: Hongyun Dong; Investigation: Zhenkun Zhang, Chunji Zhu; Analysis and interpretation of data: Qiong Zhang; Supervision: Hongyun Dong, Qiong Zhang; Drafting: Hongyun Dong; Final approval of the completed article: All authors.

Availability of data and material

The raw data used in the study will not be shared publicly but is accessible upon reasonable request from the corresponding author.

Ethics approval

The Ethics Committee of Shouguang People’s Hospital and the Health Commission of Weifang City approved this study.

Consent to participate

All the workers who participated in this study provided written informed consent.

Additional information

Funding

The Health Commission of Weifang City and Shouguang People’s Hospital sponsored this study but did not have a role in the study design; data collection, analysis, or interpretation; and decision to submit the article for publication.