Journal of the Bahrain Medical Society
Year 2024, Volume 36, Issue 4, Pages 21-31
https://doi.org/10.26715/jbms.36_4_4 Abdulla Almusalam1*, Israa Sinan2
1MsC. Head of Scientific Research & Development, King Hamad University Hospital.
2BsC. Scientific Researcher, King Hamad University Hospital.
*Corresponding author:
Abdulla Almusalam. Head of Scientific Research & Development, King Hamad University Hospital, King Hamad University Hospital. Building 2435, Road 2835, Block 228, P.O Box 24343, Busaiteen, Kingdom of Bahrain; Tel. No.: +973-39673888 ; E-Mail: Abdulla.k.almusalam@gmail.com
Received date: October 09, 2024; Accepted date: November 12, 2024; Published date: December 31, 2024
For appendix, tables and figures (if any), please refer to PDF.
Abstract
Background: Sleep is a crucial part of any stage of life to provide a resting period that is essential for decision-making matters, and mood, as well as to help the body reduce blood pressure and cardiovascular complications. Dealing with sleep deprivation is not uncommon for junior physicians working in healthcare, causing a decline in cognition which affects decision-making, and mood changes that cause irritability.
Aims: This study aims to measure the changes in visual working memory and mood within the junior physician population that faces sleep deprivation due to on-call shifts.
Methods: Following the recruitment of participants, they were asked to complete the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) to assess sleep quality and disturbances over 1 month. Following that, the participants were then requested to complete a Brief Mood Introspection Scale (BMIS) to measure their mood, as well as a visual working memory assessment (cognitive task) to assess cognitive functions. The BMIS and cognitive tasks were completed before and after their on-call shifts. Furthermore, the participants were requested to complete the BMIS and cognitive task on “normal shifts”, which was used as a control group.
Results: It has been observed that there are no statistically significant correlations between the cognition score and any of the BMIS sub-scales in the pre-call visit. However, within the post-call visit, positively associated moods in the BMIS sub-scales such as pleasantness (r = 0.414, p = 0.035) and overall positivity (r = 0.486, p = 0.012) had a statistically significant effect on cognitive scores. For the normal shift visit, all of the positively associated BMIS sub-scales had a statistically significant effect on cognitive scores: pleasantness (r= 0.640, p = 0.014), arousal (r = 0.570, p = 0.033) and overall positivity (r = 0.660, p = 0.011).
Conclusion: Sleep deprivation affects junior physicians immensely causing a decrease in positive mood and cognitive decline. Upon this reflection, medical institutions need to actively pay attention to the mental health and well-being of junior physicians to ensure that patient care is not halted or compromised.
Keywords: Sleep Deprivation, Visual Working Memory, Cognitive Impairment, Mood