anxiety and depression keeping nurses up at night: study

over 50 per cent of nurses suffered from insomnia during the first six months of the pandemic, according to a new study that sounds the alarm on the role that lack of sleep plays in a burgeoning mental health crisis.the research, published in the journal of occupational and environmental medicine, found that the fallout from the intense challenges nurses faced in the early days of covid-19 — including staff shortages, a lack of personal protective equipment and a front-row seat for widespread death and suffering — is only beginning to be understood.“nurses are already at risk for higher rates of depression and insufficient sleep compared to other professions, thanks to the stress of patient care and the nature of shift work,” said amy witkoski stimpfel, lead author of the study and an assistant professor at nyu rory meyers college of nursing. “the pandemic seems to have further exacerbated these issues to the detriment of nurses’ well-being.”researchers relied on over 600 surveys and 34 interviews with nurses in healthcare settings across the u.s. about their experiences during the first six months of the pandemic. the results revealed that 55 per cent of nurses were suffering from insomnia, 52 per cent struggled with anxiety and 22 per cent were experiencing depression. difficulty sleeping was found to be a contributor to — and outcome of — poor mental health.while sleeping for five hours or less before a shift increased the odds of insomnia, anxiety and depression, subjects said simply thinking about the challenges of the job made it difficult to fall asleep and not wake during the night. the issue was exacerbated by extended workloads and sudden shifts from days to nights to accommodate staffing issues.

sleep problems interwoven with anxiety and depression

“we found that sleep problems were interwoven with anxiety and depressive symptoms,” witkoski stimpfel said. “prior research supports this bidirectional relationship between sleep and mental health. we know that getting sufficient sleep fosters mental and emotional resilience, while not getting enough sleep predisposes the brain to negative thinking and emotional vulnerability.”researchers highlighted the need for employers to address work stress and other factors that keep frontline workers up at night and ensure they have the necessary resources — including staffing, beds and ppe — to perform their jobs. they also suggested offering stress management training and mental health-care referrals to anyone in need of support. employers can also ease the burden by paying extra attention to the way shifts are structured to ensure nurses have ample time away from work and are not subjected to excessive overtime or abrupt moves from day to night shifts.“our findings help us better understand the difficulty nurses are facing — and why some nurses are leaving their jobs or the field altogether — but also reveal opportunities for hospitals and other employers to support this critical workforce,” witkoski stimpfel said.dave yasvinski is a writer with healthing.ca