[Health risks associated with night shifts: trasversal study in a sample of nurses at the Cassino hospital].

For nurses, night work can have a negative influence not only on the quality of care and the incidence of accidents and errors but also affect their private life and health. In shift workers sleep pattern disturbances are particularly frequent. Females are more at risk than males due to their different health conditions and socio-family pressure. This transversal study , by means of a self-administered questionnaire, evaluated the incidence of mental and physical problems in 58 nurses at the "Santa Scolastica" Hospital in Cassino to identify the principal factors responsible for sleep disturbances and to implement preventive strategies. Results showed that in many cases disturbances were attributable to lack of rest . Shorter and more irregular sleep was associated with age and amount of working years, together with poor organizational capacities : irregular shifts , upbringing of children and family burdens aggravated this situation. More than half the nurses replied that they slept before starting a night shift and again when they finished in a dark room , rather than in silence with the telephone turned off.. The authors conclude that a system to monitor disturbances deriving from night work should be implemented so that preventive measures can be taken.