Recovery and well-being among Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) pilots

Radstaak, Mirjam; Geurts, Sabine A. E.; Beckers, Debby G. J.; Brosschot, J. F.; Kompier, Michiel A. J.

doi:10.1016/j.apergo.2013.12.002

Cited by 14 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…Cronbach's alpha was .77 in our study. Psychological fitness was assessed using a 6-item scale of affective well-being, which was adapted from previous studies and showed to possess a good reliability [23,24]. Items included feeling 'irritated' (reversed), 'happy', 'stressed' (reversed item), 'relaxed', 'enthusiastic', and 'satisfied'.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fatigue experiences in competitive soccer: development during matches and the impact of general performance capacity

Barte

Nieuwenhuys

Geurts

et al. 2017

Fatigue: Biomedicine, Health & Behavior

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Background: Fatigue as a result of prolonged activity may increase injury risk and decrease performance. Purpose: To provide insight in the development of fatigue experiences during soccer matches and the extent to which general performance capacity (i.e. overall physical fitness, psychological fitness, and recovery) contributes to these fatigue experiences. Methods: 450 Soccer players from the highest divisions in the Netherlands completed a questionnaire to assess (a) fatigue experiences (feeling tired, physically exhausted, not fit, weak, and mentally exhausted: not at all [1] -very much [7]) during a typical match; and (b) subjective indices of general performance capacity (i.e. general capacity to handle workload). Results: On average, fatigue levels were reported to be moderate. Fatigue increased primarily during the second half of the match and only a small decrease in fatigue was observed during half time. Generally, higher intensity fatigue experiences were reported by attackers than defenders. Regression analyses showed that players' general performance capacity explained a substantial part of fatigue at the start of a match and also predicted the development of fatigue experiences during a match, with low performance capacity being associated with higher baseline levels of fatigue and a steeper increase in fatigue over time. Conclusions: The observed association between players' general performance capacity and their fatigue levels during matches suggests that periodic screening of general performance capacity can be informative with regard to the employability of players across different stages of match-play and as such, aid in reducing injury risk and increasing performance.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fatigue experiences in competitive soccer: development during matches and the impact of general performance capacity

Barte

Nieuwenhuys

Geurts

et al. 2017

Fatigue: Biomedicine, Health & Behavior

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“…These low levels raise the question of whether the pilots suffered from sleep deprivation. However, their relatively high levels of well-being at the start and at the end of the day shifts suggest that they felt healthy and capable of doing their jobs and that they did not suffer from sleep deprivation 27) . Nevertheless, in follow-up research, it would be interesting to study their objective sleep quality and duration during recovery time, in other words, during their days off.…”

Section: Strong Points and Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This study was part of a larger study into wellbeing and stress recovery among Dutch HEMS pilots 27) . The general aim of the study and the importance of participation were explained to the total population of 27 HEMS employees during an introductory meeting.…”

Section: Participantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Work Stressors, Perseverative Cognition and Objective Sleep Quality: A Longitudinal Study among Dutch Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) Pilots

Radstaak

Geurts

Beckers

et al. 2014

Journal of Occupational Health

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Work Stressors, Perseverative Cognition and Objective Sleep Quality: A Longitudinal Study among Dutch Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) Pilots: Mirjam RADSTAAK, et al. Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands— Objectives This longitudinal study examined the associations between work stressors, perseverative cognition and subjective and objective sleep quality. We hypothesized work stressors to be associated with (i) poor nocturnal sleep quality and (ii) higher levels of perseverative cognition during a free evening. We further hypothesized (iii) perseverative cognition to be associated with poor nocturnal sleep quality and (iv) the association between work stressors and sleep quality to be mediated by perseverative cognition. Methods The participants were 24 pilots working for the Dutch Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS). They completed six questionnaires: at the end of three consecutive day shifts and each morning following the shifts. The questionnaires addressed work stressors (workload, distressing shifts and work‐related conflicts), subjective sleep quality and perseverative cognition. Participants wore actigraphs to assess sleep onset latency, total sleep time and number of awakenings. Results Correlation analysis revealed that (i) distressing shifts were related to delayed sleep onset (r=0.50, p=0.026) and that workload was related to impaired sleep quality (e.g., subjective sleep quality: r=−0.42, p=0.044). Moreover, (ii) distressing shifts were positively related to perseverative cognition (r=0.62, p=0.002), (iii) perseverative cognition delayed sleep onset (r=0.74, p<0.001) and (iv) mediated the association between distressing shifts and sleep onset latency. Conclusions Perseverative cognition may be an explanatory mechanism in the association between work stressors and poor sleep.

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“…Night flying of civilian air ambulance helicopters is common in North America and continental Europe [5][6][7]. Operation of HEMS aircraft at night are however associated with notable increases in the risk of accidents [7][8][9][10] and costs [11]. Over the last two decades HEMS operations in England have had an exemplary safety record compared to other countries [12].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Enhanced care team response to incidents involving major trauma at night: Are helicopters the answer?

McQueen

Nutbeam

Crombie

et al. 2015

Injury

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Recovery and well-being among Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) pilots

Cited by 14 publications

References 30 publications

Fatigue experiences in competitive soccer: development during matches and the impact of general performance capacity

Fatigue experiences in competitive soccer: development during matches and the impact of general performance capacity

Work Stressors, Perseverative Cognition and Objective Sleep Quality: A Longitudinal Study among Dutch Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) Pilots

Enhanced care team response to incidents involving major trauma at night: Are helicopters the answer?

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