Physiological tracers of circadian rhythms and a performance awareness index were examined as predictors of cognitive performance during two sleep deprivation conditions common to occupational shiftwork. Study 1: Thirty-three sleep-deprived participants completed a simulated nightshift. Study 2: Thirty-two partially sleep-deprived participants completed a simulated dayshift.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTeamwork is becoming increasingly common in today's workplaces; however, little research has examined how well teams perform under sleep deprivation conditions. The purpose of the current study was to examine the effect of extended work under sleep deprivation conditions on team performance. A total of 24 participants were sleep deprived for 30 h and completed 16 h of sustained operations during the last portion of the sleep deprivation period.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTo improve the healthcare environment where nurses work and patients receive care, it is necessary to understand the elements that define the healthcare environment. Primary elements include (a) the occupants of the room and what knowledge, skills, and abilities they bring to the situation; (b) what tasks the occupants will be doing in the room; and (c) the characteristics of the built environment. To better understand these components, a task analysis from human factor research was conducted to study nurses as they cared for hospitalized patients.
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