On-call work and sleep: the importance of switching on during a callout and switching off after a call

Abstract

Due to the unpredictable nature of working time arrangements, on-call workers experience regular disruption to sleep, particularly if woken by calls. Sleep disruption can impact long term physical and mental health, next day performance, and importantly, performance immediately after waking. To reduce the impact of performance impairments upon waking (i.e., reducing sleep inertia), research has investigated strategies to promote alertness (e.g., bright light, caffeine, and exercise).This review puts forth on-call workers who are likely to return to sleep after a call, it is also important to consider the impact of these sleep inertia countermeasures on subsequent sleep. Future research should build on the preliminary evidence base for sleep inertia countermeasures by examining the impact on subsequent sleep. This research is key for both supporting alertness and performance during a call ("switching on") and for allowing the on-call worker to return to sleep after a call ("switching off").

A preliminary framework for managing sleep inertia in occupational settings

“…This may have been due to visual interference from the light source itself, highlighting the importance of translational studies to test not only the effectiveness of a specific device, but also the implementation for specific operational tasks and environments. Another potential limitation of both proactive and reactive sleep inertia countermeasures is the effect of sleep inertia countermeasures on subsequent sleep [ 59 ]. This may be particularly pertinent after short callouts where personnel will have the opportunity to sleep after returning from a call-out or following false alarms.…”

“…This may be particularly pertinent after short callouts where personnel will have the opportunity to sleep after returning from a call-out or following false alarms. If sleep inertia countermeasures prevent workers from being able to return to sleep, then this can lead to sleep loss which could unnecessarily affect next-day safety and performance [ 59 ]. As such more research is needed to determine the effects of sleep inertia countermeasures on subsequent sleep [ 59 ].…”

“…If sleep inertia countermeasures prevent workers from being able to return to sleep, then this can lead to sleep loss which could unnecessarily affect next-day safety and performance [ 59 ]. As such more research is needed to determine the effects of sleep inertia countermeasures on subsequent sleep [ 59 ].…”

A Time to Rest, a Time to Dine: Sleep, Time-Restricted Eating, and Cardiometabolic Health

“…One of the leading causes of circadian disruption is working non-standard hours including shift work [ 9 ]. Shift work disrupts the usual sleep–wake cycle as workers may be on shift during times when the body is primed to be sleeping (i.e., at night), attempting sleep when the body is primed to be awake (i.e., during the day), or woken during a sleep period when working an on-call schedule [ 29 , 30 ]. This leads to inadequate sleep in shift work populations [ 31 , 32 ], contributing to circadian disruption, which is recognised as a major contributor to CVD risk in shift workers [ 9 ].…”