Psychomotor Vigilance Testing on Neonatal Transport: A Western Australian Experience

Objective

This study aimed to assess whether undertaking retrieval was associated with fatigue independent of sleep and circadian disruption. It also aimed to assess the feasibility of routinely measuring the psychomotor vigilance test (PVT) on neonatal transport. Fatigue is associated with impaired clinician performance and safety. The association between shift work, sleep deprivation, and circadian disruption is well established. No studies have specifically assessed the independent effect of the retrieval environment on fatigue.

Methods

Medical and nursing staff of the neonatal retrieval team were prospectively recruited over a 12-month period. Simple reaction times (RTs) were recorded at the start and end of a day shift using a validated 3-minute PVT.

Results

The end-of-shift RT increased (not significant) by 6.38 milliseconds (95% confidence interval [CI], −2.17 to 14.92 milliseconds; P = .149) when retrieval was undertaken. A 1-millisecond increase in RT increased the odds of being in a subjective sleepy category by 0.57% (95% CI, 0.0036-0.0078; P < .001). Consuming caffeine during the shift increased the mean RT by 16.26 milliseconds (95% CI, 4.43-28.1 milliseconds; P < .01).

Conclusion

The RT of participants exposed to the retrieval environment was not significantly increased. Further studies are needed to consolidate these results as well as to further assess longer-range air medical retrievals.