Fatigue management and shiftwork training course for shiftwork managers

There aren't a lot of public courses created specifically to train managers in 24/7 opertaions so we like to let you know when they do come along. International Quality & Productivity Center, a global conference company, is running a series of training classes in 4 Australian cities during June and July of this year that you might want to consider. The program, FATIGUE MANAGEMENT & SHIFTWORK Exchanging Best Practice Strategies for Mitigating Fatigue Risk in a Shiftwork Environment, is lead by Drew Dawson, a professor and recognized sleepp and shiftwork expert. (The link gives you additional information and an early-bird discount of about 7% if you respond by April 8.)

The course covers topics of importance to managing shiftworkers and running a 24/7 operation. It includes information on fatigue countermeasures and shiftworker training, legal issues, and shiftwork management policies.

Shiftworkers share what it's really like to work shiftwork

The experts have a lot to say that can be helpful to shiftworkers and 24/7 managers -- advice on sleep and napping, shift scheduling, fatigue countermeasures, caffeine, shiftworker lifestyle training, etc. But, a central goal of the National Shiftwork Information Center is to provide a place where shiftworkers of all types can exchange ideas -- shiftworker to shiftworker.

So, here are some additional quotes, from conversations with the shiftworkers in the U.S. National Weather Service. The question posed was, "tell us what shifwork is really like for you?" Here's what three shiftworkers had to say:

"Shiftwork is definitely not for everyone...it is hard on your body and you never seem to get enough rest. However, meteorologists are but a few of the career fields that rotate shifts, and the rewards of a job which is always different and presents new challenges cannot be overestimated. "

Another person said ...

"I would rather work an evening shift or a mid than days. It is so hard to get up early and I love having weekdays off sometimes. Also, we get enough weekends off to satisfy "weekend trips" that I need to take sometimes. Also, working 9 to 5 all of the time can get monotonous. "

Finally, we heard this ...

"Due to the fact that weather does not work a 9 to 5 schedule, having to staff National Weather Service (NWS) field offices around the clock is necessary. I don't know if there is a better solution at this time than rotating shifts. The few studies that I've read and agree with suggest that if you must work rotating shifts, then work a week or longer of the same shift and then rotate to the next shift. Our office rotates this way, as do many others in the NWS. After 3 years of shift work, I don't think I would WANT to go back to working straight day shifts from 8 to 5. I enjoy having weekdays off to get things done such as going to the post office, banking and the like. Sure, I may miss out on some social gatherings, but I would even if I worked straight day shifts. Shiftwork in the summer is great, in that you can often enjoy most of the daylight hours with the kids or other family before going in to work. "

As you can see, there are drawbacks and challenges but also many reasons people like shiftwork.

What is shifwork really like for you? Post your comment below.

Ed

Source: http://www.srh.noaa.gov/women/faqshift.html#shifts_and_kids

Why managers in 24/7 need to pay attention to the special needs of shiftworkers

There are about 25 million shiftworkers in this country. They work in factories, hospitals, power plants, railroads, police and fire departments, mines, paper mills, and hundreds of other types of 24-hour operations.

But shiftworkers do more than work at night. They work out of sync with the human body's natural instinct for being awake during the day and sleeping at night. This creates increased health and safety risks for shiftworkers in addition to the health and safety issues faced by their day-working counterparts. To improve the health and safety of employees, employers must address a number of additional areas.

These fall into two categories: employee lifestyle training and corporate policies and practices.

Because of the disruption to their circadian rhythms, nightshift workers have a higher incidence of ulcers and other gastrointestinal disorders, more on-the-job and driving home accidents, lower productivity, and higher absenteeism and turnover--to name some of the most common "hidden" costs of operating around the clock. To reduce or eliminate these costs requires a comprehensive program that addresses the operational, physiological, and sociological factors.

Tired people don't find better ways to accomplish their tasks. They pay less attention to what they're doing and take longer to respond to mistakes.

In spite of the long years of schooling and training in many cases, shiftworkers and their managers are given no formal preparation on handling the special demands of working at night. There is no course on how to work long shifts or how to keep alert and effective. The fatigue that comes along with the job adversely affects attention, judgment, energy, morale, and motivation.

Compared to well-rested people, tired people move slower and work less efficiently. They don't find better ways to accomplish their tasks. They pay less attention to what they're doing and take longer to respond to mistakes. Response to alarms is slower, tools are dropped, and productivity suffers.

This is equally true for nuclear power plant engineers, pilots, manufacturing control room operators, air traffic controllers, police officers, and firefighters--anyone who works at night. In fact, even people who work 9-to-5 can benefit from increased alertness.

We'll have more to say on shiftwork and management practices.

Ed

For further reading:
* Best practices for managing a shiftwork operation
* Shiftworker lifestyle training: fatigue countermeasures, sleep strategies, and more
* Shiftwork training to improve alertness and safety on the night shift
* Shiftwork schedules: fixed or rotating
* Shiftwork schedules in the 24/7 world
*

Foods that help you stay alert or help you sleep

An important part of shiftworker lifestyle training is fatigue countermeasures and understanding how to manipulate your alertness -- both to maintain safe performance when you need it and to be able to get to sleep when you can.

When it comes to using substances to control alertness, we tend to think right away of caffeine, and perhaps some controlled substances, to maintain alertness and sleeping pills or melatonin to induce sleep. But there are many foods which also have alertness-increasing 0r -decreasing effects that you should be aware of.

Foods the reduce alertness
These foods have tryptophan or l-tryptophan and will help induce sleep.

• Bananas & Pineapple
• Cheese
• Eggs
• Ice Cream
• Lobster
• Meat (Beef)
• Milk
• Potatoes
• Turkey
• Valerian Tea

Foods that increase alertness
These foods contain tyrosine and/or caffeine and have stimulating effects.

• Avocados
• Beef (Aged)
• Cheese (Aged)
• Chicken & Fish
• Chocolate
• Coca Cola & Coffee
• Figs (Canned)
• Garlic
• Ginger Ale
• Horseradish
• Persimmon
• Pickled Herring
• Sour Cream
• Soy Sauce
• Sprouts
• Yogurt

Other recent National Shiftwork Information Center posts on shiftworker lifestyle training include:

• Shiftworker lifestyle training: fatigue countermeasures, sleep strategies, and more
• Shiftwork training to improve alertness and safety on the night shift

Have a good day, or night!

Ed

Source: The U.S. Navy (clicking on this link will oepn a PDF file on your computer)

Best practices for managing a shiftwork operation

In our previuos post, we discussed shiftworker lifestyle training as an important step for employers of shiftworkers to implement. Beyond shiftworker lifestyle training, a wide range of factors affect alertness and performance, and therefore the health, and safety of shiftworkers. Some of the most prominent are:

• Hiring practices
• Length of shift
• Shift schedule
• Rotating or fixed
• Overtime
• Work environment
• Overnight food selection.

In future posts on the National Shiftwork Information Center blog we'll look at each of these areas. Let us know your tips and practices so we can include them here.

Further reading:
* Shiftwork schedules in the 24/7 world
* Why managers in 24/7 need to pay attention to the special needs of shiftworkers
* Shiftwork schedules: fixed or rotating
* Shiftwork schedule factors: work-rest ratios and predictability
* Shiftwork schedule factors: speed and direction of rotation
* Shiftwork schedules: time of shift
* Hiring shiftworkers: best practices for managers in 24/7 operations
* Adapting to night shifts -- helping shiftworkers adapt and avoid shiftworker maladaptation

Shiftworker lifestyle training: fatigue countermeasures, sleep strategies, and more

From time to time articles appear in the general press about the dangers of shiftwork. It's important to understand the risks, but it's equally important to focus on practical steps to improve the health, safety and work performance of shiftworkers in 24/7 operations. One relatively easy, and relatively inexpensive step 24/7 business operators can take is to provide their employees with shiftworker lifestyle training.

Shiftworkers' alertness, hence their ability to perform effectively, is dependent on many factors. Some of those factors are beyond their control, such as their work schedule, but others are directly affected by the individual's actions. Lifestyle training means giving workers the knowledge they need to make appropriate adjustments to their lives in order to ensure health and safety.

As the name suggests, successful lifestyle training affects a worker's entire life, not merely his or her time at work. Adjustments on the part of shiftworkers will therefore be contingent upon acceptance by spouses and family members who also will be affected. For this reason, we recommend including spouses in lifestyle training whenever possible.

Lifestyle training should start with a non-technical discussion of circadian rhythms and how they effect human alertness. Shiftworkers, whether nurses, police officers, pilots, factory workers, or whomever, must understand there is a fundamental difference between day shift work and night shift work. Humans have evolved over millions of years to be awake during the day and asleep at night. Unless shiftworkers acknowledge this basic fact, the rest of the training process is meaningless.

After this first step, lifestyle training should address the following areas and provide specific details on fatigue countermeasures:

Sleep
Seven or eight hours of uninterrupted sleep are important to everyone's health and well-being. Our bodies are not programmed to sleep during the day. As a result, daytime sleep typically reduces both the quantity and quality of sleep. Making sure the sleeping room is dark, quiet, well-ventilated, and not too warm is an important step. A high-quality mattress also improves sleep.

Nutrition
People who work the night shift need to know about general nutrition, but that alone is not enough. Our bodies simply were not designed to eat at night. Your stomach won't digest full meals, so you should eat in smaller portions. Spicy, rich, and fatty foods are particularly hard to handle at night. Careless eating habits can cause indigestion, discomfort, drowsiness, and weight gain.

Family and social life
All shiftworkers have to think about many things differently than 9-to-5 workers. This is particularly true if you are trying to maintain a family and social life. Celebrating holidays a week early, videotaping children's birthday parties, and breakfast dates are just some of the accommodations you can make to keep connected to the rest of your life. People who emphasize communication and plan effectively have shown that work and family can mix and that single people can have a social life.

Job performance and safety
You need to emphasize safety because accidents are more likely to occur at night than on other shifts. One study found the number of accidents is 23 percent higher on the night shift. With knowledge of the factors that affect alertness, you can avoid safety lapses, improve work performance, and prevent falling asleep at the wheel.

Lifestyle training improves job performance, as well as employees' health, safety, and quality of life. This has been most thoroughly documented in a report on CANALERT '95, an alertness assurance program funded by Canada's three largest railroads, which took before-and-after measurements of a broad range of criteria. [More about CANALERT '95 at the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers website or at Railway Age.]

The improved health and quality of life, in turn, improve morale and tend to lower absenteeism and turnover rates. Absenteeism and turnover are particularly problematic in round-the-clock operations because of the difficulty of getting substitute workers on short notice and training new workers in a continuous operation environment.

Shiftworkers: have you received some sort of lifestyle training? Was it helpful? Did it include your spouse?

24/7 Managers: does your company provide shiftworker lifestyle training? What are the costs and benefits?

Share your opinions and experiences. Post a comment now.

Shiftwork training to improve alertness and safety on the night shift

Safe operations depend on three factors: performance, attentiveness and alertness. Managers responsible for ensuring safety traditionally focus resources on performance. Most employers have elaborate hiring procedures for selecting people with the aptitude and experience to do the job. In many cases, these people have already spent time and money on their own education.

Managers are somewhat less focused on ensuring attentiveness. To varying degrees, managers monitor and control the factors that contribute to worker attentiveness--workload, motivation, and distractions. They have performance reviews and compensation plans. They provide productivity-enhancing tools and conduct workflow studies to simplify jobs and allow workers to focus.

But management attention has, for the most part, been nonexistent when it comes to alertness. And yet fatigue impairs judgment, which imperils the lives of employees, not to mention the financial health of the organization.

Most companies take employee alertness as a variable factor over which they have no control. This may have been true at one time, but it is not true today. There is now a sizable body of research that enables people to better understand, and so control, the elements of alertness.
Any system is only as strong as its weakest link. Everyone knows this to be true. And yet, companies may spend millions of dollars on training and spend nothing on how to live the life that accompanies the job.

If you think of humans as computers, the typical training we provide is like software. It helps people process data and provide an appropriate output. Unlike a computer, however, humans' ability to process data quickly and accurately is affected by their alertness. The missing element is training shiftworkers to enable them to maintain alertness at required levels.

This is not a radical new concept. In organizations across North America, health awareness and wellness programs are already in place. These programs are an effort to improve work performance and workers' quality of life by encouraging exercise, weight loss, better sleep habits, quitting smoking, etc. These wellness programs fall short, however, for the 20 percent of the workforce that works non-traditional hours. What makes sense for daytime workers may not make sense, or may be impractical, for night shift workers. The solution is alertness and safety training that is specifically created for night shift workers.