A Pilot Study Using Casino Shifts to Improve Sleep for Emergency Medicine Fellows Working Night Shifts.

OBJECTIVES

Casino shifts, which end at 4 AM and allow sleep during the circadian "anchor period," may improve sleep and reduce fatigue for pediatric emergency medicine (PEM) fellows working night shifts. We hypothesized that using a casino shift model would improve perceived fatigue levels and measured sleep metrics.

METHODS

In this pilot prospective observational cohort study, fellows worked traditional night shifts for one month (control) followed by casino shifts for one month (intervention). Sleep data were collected using a validated wrist actigraph (ReadiBand), and subjective perceptions of fatigue were collected using surveys.

RESULTS

Eight fellows participated in the study. Compared with the control month, the intervention month was associated with increased sleep quantity and sleep efficiency as measured by the actigraph. Fellows also reported reduced perceived fatigue and improved energy levels during the intervention month.

CONCLUSIONS

Switching to a casino shift schedule was associated with improvements in measured sleep and perceived fatigue among a cohort of PEM fellows in this pilot study. These preliminary findings warrant further investigation with larger samples and randomized scheduling to further explore the potential benefits and limitations of casino shift models in emergency medicine.