Poor Quality of Sleep among Healthcare Workers in a Tertiary Care Centre.

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Health personnel work under highly stressful conditions with long work hours, frequent night work, and shift duties resulting in sleep problems. Sleep problems lead to a decline in performance, cognition, memory, decision-making, medical errors and mental disorders. The study aimed to find out the prevalence of poor quality of sleep among healthcare workers in a tertiary care centre. Methods: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted among healthcare workers (doctors, nurses, paramedics) of a tertiary care centre after obtaining ethical approval from the Institutional Review Committee. Data was collected from 1 October to 1 December 2023. A convenience sampling method was used. The point estimate was calculated at a 95% Confidence Interval. Results: Among 127 healthcare workers, the prevalence of poor quality of sleep was seen in 61 (48.03%) (39.34-56.72, 95% Confidence Interval). A total of 31 (50.82%) were female and 30 (49.18%) were male. Conclusions: The prevalence of poor sleep quality was found to be higher than that of other studies done in similar settings. There is a need to enhance institutional support like incorporating flexible work schedules, and regular wellness programs to alleviate poor sleep quality among healthcare workers. Keywords health personnel; mental disorders; prevalence; quality of sleep; sleep.