0213 The Association Between Work-Related Job Demands and Daytime Impairment in Professional Firefighters

Abstract

Introduction Sleep is an important predictor of daytime functioning and is impaired in first responders. The present study investigated whether job demands were associated with daytime impairment in professional firefighters. We hypothesized that the frequency of emergency calls would predict daytime impairment above and beyond years of service, sleep apnea risk, and sleep duration. Methods Participants were 267 (251 males; mean age=41.94) firefighters from the Richmond, Virginia Fire Department who completed pen-and-paper surveys in small groups assessing sleep duration (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index; PSQI), sleep apnea risk (STOP-BANG), job demands (number of emergency calls received per day), and sleep-related impairment (Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System 8-item short-form; PROMIS). A three block hierarchical regression was used to assess the contribution of job demands to daytime impairment. Results The final model significantly predicted sleep-related daytime impairment, F(4,260)=11.51, p<.001, R2=.15. Each block in the model accounted for significant change in variance, years of service and sleep apnea risk (R2=.05), sleep duration (∆R2=.08), number of calls (∆R2=.01). Number of emergency calls significantly predicted daytime impairment (β=.14) above and beyond number of years of service (β= -.24), sleep duration (β= -.29), and sleep apnea risk (β=.03). Conclusion With 2–18 emergency calls per 24-hour period, the results suggest that job-related demands are a unique contributor to daytime functioning in professional firefighters. As such, it will be important for interventions aimed at improving sleep in professional firefighters to incorporate information unique to the profession (i.e., job specific demands and intensity of work) as specific treatment factors. Support This work was supported by the National Institute on Aging (K23AG049955, PI: Dzierzewski).