· Log in

About

Warning: Missing argument 1 for get_page(), called in /home/shift/public_html/wp-content/plugins/wp_coupons_v3/coupons.php on line 64 and defined in /home/shift/public_html/wp-includes/post.php on line 3121

Shift Work Disorder News keeps professionals (doctors, nurses, researchers) up to date regarding the world of sleep disorders, new methods used in the treatment of such disorders with special emphasis on Shift Work Sleep Disorder and the dangers of ‘drowsy driving’.

Often referred to as a circadian rhythm disorder, Shift Work Sleep Disorder (SWSD) is a medical condition caused when an individual’s internal clock is out of sync with their work schedule. The condition is most often seen in people who work outside the standard framework of a 9 to 5 schedule. Since the advent of the Internet and the ‘start-up’ mentality of 24/7 employees, there has been a sharp rise of people suffering from Shift Work Sleep Disorder. This condition can lead to numerous side effects, the most disasterous is known as ‘drowsy driving’.

250,000 drivers fall asleep at the wheel everyday, according to the Division of Sleep Medicine at the Harvard Medical School and in a national poll released last year by the National Sleep Foundation, 54% of adult drivers said they had driven while drowsy during the past year with 28% saying they had actually fallen asleep while driving.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Drowsy Driving is a factor in more than 100,000 crashes, resulting in 1,550 deaths and 40,000 injuries annually. The National Sleep Foundation, puts the numbers much higher: 71,000 injuries and more than 5,500 deaths a year. An obstacle for police is that there is no test for drowsy driving like the Breathalyzer an officer can give a motorist suspected of drunken driving.

Researchers have show that a person who drives after 18 consecutive hours without sleep performs at the same level as a person with a blood-alcohol concentration of .08% — the legal standard for drunken driving in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Treatment for Shift Work Disorder ranges from medication to a combination of natural alternative, including biofeedback and exercise. Shift Word Disorder News is contributed to by a multi-disciplinary group of professionals.

SFD News Contributors Include:

Thomas Reinke
Tom has a diverse health care management background including positions at Temple University Health System and the Greater Baltimore Medical Center. His accomplishments include achieving Medicare certification of Temple’s Lung Transplant Program and certification of its Lung Volume Reduction Surgery Program. He also has health care consulting experience with CPA firms including BDO Seidman, LLP where he successfully completed health care financing projects up to $100 million. Tom currently writes for a number of health care industry publications and his previous works can be seen in Managed Care, The Physician Executive (ACPE) ACP Observer, ACP Hospitalist, Physicians News Digest and Pennsylvania Medicine. Tom is also the Treasurer and Executive Committee Member of the Livengrin Foundation for Addiction Recovery, a non-profit drug and alcohol addiction treatment center.

John Williams
John covers news in the Pharmaceutical industry and research and development of sleep aids.

Cheryl Davey
Cheryl is a a former National Fitness Competitor & Finalist and the founder of Exercise Forums, one of the longest running exercise discussion boards on the Internet. As our Exercise expert, she is an AFAA Certified Personal Trainer & Aerobics Instructor and also certified in Nutrition Fundamentals.

J. McLaughlin
Ms. McLaughlin is a Registered Dietitian with twenty years experience in public health nutrition. She received her BA in Sociology with a concentration in Social Work from LaSalle University and her MS in Clinical Nutrition from Drexel University. The interdisciplinary nature of her educational background has carried forth throughout her professional career. She has focused her work primarily on health issues in underserved populations, particularly women and children living in poverty, pregnant teens, women in recovery, and women and children at risk of HIV/AIDS. Ms. McLaughlin has experience in the provision of direct services, program development and program evaluation, health advocacy and nutrition policy initiatives, low-literacy educational materials development, and nutrition education at the community and university levels. Her primary professional interests are in community-based participatory prevention research and program evaluation.

M. Gibbons
Mary handles national and local reporting on Drowsy Driving issues.

Sean Barker
Sean covers natural remedies for sleep issues including acupuncture, biofeedback and circadian rhythm.

Phil Konstantin
Officer Phil is a former California Highway Patrol officer and has experienced the tragedy of drowsy driving both on a professional and personal basis. In 1999, his wife Robyn fell asleep behind the wheel and was killed. Since then, he has been a strong advocate on educating the public on the dangers of driving while drowsy.

Latest Headlines

In The News

Sleep loss boosts optimism and limits negative thinking

New drug funding for narcoleptic New Zealanders

Sleeping on your side may help prevent snoring

Sleep patient dies during study

Daytime sleep detrimental to shift workers