Advancing fatigue management in healthcare: Risk-based approaches that enhance health service delivery

It is well established that worker fatigue is associated with an increased risk of accident, injury and poor work performance [1]. Shift workers typically experience greater fatigue than day workers, due to factors including circadian disruption, long shifts, rotating rosters and limited sleep opportunities. The healthcare industry relies on shift workers to provide around-the-clock care, and as such must manage fatigue-related risk. Fatigue experienced by health professionals is associated with poor work performance, errors, occupational injury and an increased likelihood of a vehicle crash while driving to/from work [2]. Furthermore, fatigue in healthcare workers can result in poor patient outcomes, including an increased likelihood of surgical errors [3], infection [4] and medication administration errors [5].