Shifting Schedules

Abstract

(2008) 'Shifting schedules : the health e ects of reorganizing shift work.', American journal of preventive medicine., 34 (5). pp. 427-434. Further information on publisher's website:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre. 2007.12.023 Publisher's copyright statement:Additional information: Use policyThe full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-pro t purposes provided that:• a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in DRO • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders.Please consult the full DRO policy for further details. INTRODUCTIONShift work is an increasingly common form of work organisation. Around one fifth of workers are engaged in some kind of shift work. 1 Technological advances, changes in the economy, and the emergence of 24 hour societies 2,3 mean that shift work is no longer confined to the manufacturing and industrial sectors, and it is now an important aspect of employment in the retail and service sectors. Shift work continues to be commonplace amongst health care and emergency services personnel, with up to 50% of hospital staff working on shifts. 4 However, it remains socially patterned with a higher prevalence amongst lower socio-economic groups, 5 and so it is they who most experience the adverse consequences of shift work on health and work-life balance (WLB).Possible negative effects of shift work on health and WLB are well known. 1,[6][7][8] Reported health problems include sleep disturbances, fatigue, digestive problems, emotional problems and stress-related illnesses, as well as increases in general morbidity, and in sickness absence. 9 These problems may derive from disruption to physiological, psychological and social circadian rhythms. 6,7 Shift work, particularly that involving night work, disrupts the natural circadian rhythm as it requires people to be active at times when they would normally be sleeping and vice versa. 7 This leads to sleep problems (as natural alerting mechanisms such as the cortisol surge and temperature rise will interrupt sleep) as well as daytime functioning (wakefulness at night will be reduced by temperature drops and melatonin surges Most existing research emphasises the physiological changes which shift work induces, but shift work also involves significant social desynchronisation, involving working at times and on days that may make it difficult to maintain a balanced domestic and social life. 15 The Work Foundation defines work-life balance (WLB) as:"people having a measure of control over when, where and how they work. It is achieved when an individual"s right to a fulfilled life inside and outside paid work is accepted and respected as the norm to the mutual benefit of the individual, business and society". 16 It has been suggested that wor...

Are work organization interventions effective in preventing or reducing work-related musculoskeletal disorders? A systematic review of the literature

“…(13, p296) Driessen et al (24) concluded on the lack of randomized controlled trials (RCT) on organizational interventions to reduce low back and neck pain. There are few reviews on this topic, and these did not apply a systematic review methodology (13), grouped in their synthesis interventions both with and without an organizational/psychosocial component (eg, workstation adjustments only) (13,24) or were restricted to specific groups of workers (eg, shift workers) (25). It is also useful to review more recent intervention studies published since these previous reviews.…”

“…Previous reviews looking at work organizational or psychosocial interventions were either not systematic (13), combined in their synthesis interventions both with and without an organizational component (eg, computer workstation adjustments only) (24) or focused on specific groups of workers (25) or body regions (upper limbs) (68). Another strength is the use of an extensive search strategy covering 11 key databases in health sciences, social sciences and occupational health, in both English and French.…”

Health-related interventions among night shift workers: a critical review of the literature

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The ageing shift worker: a prospective cohort study on need for recovery, disability, and retirement intentions

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