The Bottom Line - February 1, 2016 - By Celia Bradford
Ref: Maltese. Intensive Care Medicine (2016) 42:393-400 - DOI 10.1007/s00134-4115-4
Clinical Question
In Intensive care doctors what is the impact of night shift work on cognitive performance?
Authors' Conclusions
All cognitive abilities worsened after night shift. The level of impairment did not differ based on seniority of the doctor or the hours of sleep obtained on the night shift. Doctors were found to be poor at self-evaluating their level of fatigue
The Bottom Line
Night shift reduces the cognitive ability of physicians. Awareness of this may be a trigger to improve patient safety such that delaying non-urgent procedures or decisions until daylight hours is prioritised