Abstract
The present pilot study examined the effectiveness of self-help therapy (SHT) in hospital nurses in Japan. Twenty-five hospital nurses (22 female, mean age 39.7 ± 14.6 years) participated in a 90-min workshop covering sleep hygiene education and brief stress management. After the workshop, participants in the SHT group (n = 10) were asked to practice good sleep habits, relaxation techniques, and keep a sleep diary, whereas participants in the control group (n = 15) were not. Pre- and post-test questionnaires, including the Japanese version of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (J-PSQI), were administered at a 2-week interval to assess subjective sleep quality, sleepiness, depressive symptoms, burnout, and quality of life. Changes in outcomes by treatment conditions were compared using linear mixed models. We found significant improvement in subjective sleep quality (global PSQI scores) in the SHT group, with Cohen’s d of 0.40. Participants with sleep problems at pre-test in the SHT group (scoring above the PSQI-J cut-off point) showed significant reduction in sleep latency and sleep disturbance, while those in the control group did not (Cohen’s d of 0.48 and 0.15, respectively). No significant improvement was found in the SHT group for sleepiness, although a clinically significant change was observed for subjective sleep quality and sleepiness in this group. No significant improvement was observed in either group for depressive symptoms, burnout, and quality of life. Our results provide preliminary evidence for the effectiveness of SHT for sleep problems in hospital nurses in Japan.
Highlights
Many hospital nurses in Japan suffer from sleep problems due to stressful work conditions, typically characterized by labor-intensive long shift work hours and a quick return to work [1]
Participants in the self-help therapy (SHT) group showed a significant reduction in global PSQI scores from pre- to post-test (p = 0.01), while the control group did not, with Cohen’s d of 0.40 (Fig. 2)
Post-hoc analysis of this interaction using the Sidak method found that participants without sleep problems in the control group showed a trend of reduction from pre- to post-test (p = 0.07), but this was not seen in the SHT group
Summary
Many hospital nurses in Japan suffer from sleep problems due to stressful work conditions, typically characterized by labor-intensive long shift work hours and a quick return to work [1]. Given that sleep problems can lead to errors during working time [4] and psychological impairment [5], effective sleep management treatment for hospital nurses is necessary. A recent meta-analysis showed that the effect size of SHT for insomnia and psychological impairment using cognitive behavioral techniques (e.g., sleep diary, stimulus control, relaxation, sleep restriction) is small to moderate, which is equivalent to individual treatments [7]. Hypothesis 2 Improvements in sleep problems are evident after SHT
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