# Improving the Health of EMS professionals through Sleep Health Education and Sleep Disorder Screening

> **NIH NIH R56** · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · 2020 · $793,065

## Abstract

Sleep deficiency is highly prevalent in the general population and is especially pervasive in shift workers.
As first responders who need to be available 24-7, EMS clinicians are especially vulnerable to sleep deficiency
and fatigue. More than one in three EMS clinicians experience excessive daytime sleepiness which can
compromise their health and patient safety.
 The long-term goal of this line of research is to improve the health and safety of Emergency Medical
Services (EMS) clinicians and subsequently the patients they treat. The overall objective of this application is
to deliver knowledge through a sleep health program to improve sleep and sustain alertness, as well as identify
and promote treatment of undiagnosed sleep disorders. The central hypothesis is that a sleep education
initiative can translate to improved clinician health and more reliable patient care. This hypothesis has been
formulated on the basis of similar work in police and firefighters. The rationale for the proposal is that
substantial improvements in safety can be realized through screening for undiagnosed, easily treatable health
conditions.
 The central hypothesis will be tested by pursuing the following three specific aims: (1) To estimate the
prevalence of sleep disorders nationally in the EMS workforce and determine the extent to which sleep
disorders are associated with medical errors and adverse events; (2) To test the hypothesis that delivery of an
online educational intervention will increase knowledge of sleep health; and (3) To test the hypothesis that
delivery of an online educational intervention will increase sleep quality, sleep duration, and alertness.
 We will enroll 5,000 EMS clinicians in a prospective nationwide survey. Participants will complete a
customized sleep health education program that includes screening for sleep disorders. Subsequent web-
based surveys will capture sleep duration, sleep quality, alertness and patient-safety outcomes. Objective
sleep data will be collected in a subset of participants.
 Nearly 1 million EMS providers currently provide care to 30 million patients a year, and over half of these
providers report severely impaired alertness. Medical errors and adverse events are frequent and have been
associated with impaired alertness. This contribution is significant because the proposal will improve alertness
and can be integrated into existing continuing education requirements. The proposal is innovative in that it
seeks to address the source of impaired alertness rather than manage the symptoms. The product will
seamlessly translate to widespread, practical implementation.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10241749
- **Project number:** 1R56HL151637-01
- **Recipient organization:** BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL
- **Principal Investigator:** Matthew David Weaver
- **Activity code:** R56 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $793,065
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-09-17 → 2022-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10241749

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10241749, Improving the Health of EMS professionals through Sleep Health Education and Sleep Disorder Screening (1R56HL151637-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10241749. Licensed CC0.

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