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Shift Work Disorder – Working Nights Calendar for Health Care Workers

Written by: SFD News on September 18th, 2009

Shift Work Disorder - Working Nights Calendar for Health Care Workers | read this item

Circadian Age, Inc., – `Working Nights` – specializing in helping managers and employees of organizations with round the clock operations adjust to their unique lifestyles, announces its new 2010 calendar for health care workers. The calendar helps workers in hospitals, assisted living facilities, ambulance units, nursing care facilities, and health clinics face the work/life challenges they encounter as a result of their unusual, and often variable, work schedules.

“Medical workers experience tremendous stress on the job which can lead to fatigue and sleep impairment,” reports Betsy Connolly, Working Nights` President. “Our calendar provides workers with meaningful tips about health and safety and an opportunity to better manage their lives when working shifts.”

The topics highlighted in the calendar all focus on related health and safety education and prevention for medical workers. February`s topic is Reducing Ergonomic Risks. According to a recent report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2.5% of nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants experienced Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSDs) – injuries or illnesses that affect the connective tissues of the body such as muscles, nerves, joints, tendons, cartilage, or spinal discs.

This rate is more than seven times the average national rate of MSDs for all occupations. According to the report, almost 30 percent of all days away from work were related to MSDs. Preventing MSDs requires work scheduling that reduces the time of exposure to demanding work conditions and promotes healthful work-rest patterns.

With the increased use of on-line shift scheduling by health care employees, workers need to make sure that the shift schedules they sign up for maximize sleep opportunities to prevent fatigue related errors, provide adequate recovery periods to limit personal injury risk, and provide time for social activities with friends and family members. Other calendar topics include, Men and Women and Sleep, Managing Hazardous and Toxic Substances, Lowering Stress and Anxiety, New Tips about Caffeine, Restless Leg Syndrome and Vitamin Tips. The calendar incorporates color-coded stickers to help workers and their families manage their day-to-day lives.

Employers can customize the calendar with their organization`s logo and include
specific messages to employees. The 2010 Working Nights Creative Arts Calendar
Contest is also available to health care employers. The Contest offers
organizations the opportunity to create a custom health and safety calendar
incorporating winning illustrations or photographs submitted by the
organization`s employees and their family members. Winners` artwork and their
names will be included in the calendar.

To learn more about Working Nights, please visit http://www.workingnights.com/
or http://www.workingnights.com/blog/.