Firefighters who feel burned out often experience sleep issues, which also increases their risk of emotional fatigue, exhaustion and health problems, researchers say.
Wolkow and colleagues surveyed more than 6,300 North American firefighters at 66 fire departments with a questionnaire designed to assess burnout. It asked about feelings of emotional exhaustion,"depersonalization" of the people firefighters help, and about the individual's own sense of personal accomplishment.
At the same time, the research team found that getting sufficient sleep during the period a firefighter worked an overnight or 24-hour shift lowered these risks. Sleep quantity when working these shifts was the primary driver of the association between burnout and having a sleep disorder or mental health condition, the researchers calculated, and was more important than getting more sleep following an overnight shift or during days off.
"In particular, efforts that are tailored to the unique needs and work schedules of first responders may be especially helpful," said Melanie Hom of Florida State University in Tallahassee, who wasn't involved in the study.
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