Fire Fighter Fatigue Management Program: Operation Healthy Sleep

NCT ID: NCT01988129

Last Updated: 2017-03-16

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 1189 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2009-03-31
• Study Completion Date: 2013-09-30

Brief 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

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Intervention

Workplace-based fatigue risk management program consisting of sleep health education and sleep disorders screening. The 32 fire department stations were paired according to the previous calendar years' workload. One station from each pair was randomly assigned to receive the intervention program. Sleep education sessions were scheduled according to station. On the education day(s) assigned to that stations, all personnel present that day were instructed to attend, and 542/601 did so.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Sleep disorders education and screening

Intervention Type: OTHER

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.

Control

Current practice. Firefighters in the Control Stations continued their normal role and were not invited to attend the sleep education and sleep disorders screening program. There was no formal contact with the control group.

As part of normal operational requirements, a small number of firefighters are reassigned to other stations each day and therefore 18/588 firefighters from control stations happened to be reassigned to an intervention station on the day of the education session and attended the session.

Group Type: NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

Interventions

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.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• This proposal includes research involving human subjects (fire department employees).
• Active firefighters working in the study fire department will be eligible to participate in the study.
• All applicants will be considered without bias, regardless of race, ethnicity, or national origin.

Exclusion Criteria

• Non fire department employees

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

Federal Emergency Management Agency

FED

Sponsor Role: collaborator

Brigham and Women's Hospital

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Charles Andrew Czeisler, MD, PhD

Charles A Czeisler, Ph.D., M.D.,

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Steven Lockley, Ph.D.

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Brigham and Women's Hospital

Locations

BWH Division of Sleep Medicine

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Countries

United States

Other Identifiers

2009-P-000697

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id