MINNEAPOLIS, May 1, 2008—For years physicians have known that driving while sleepy is a public health problem on a par with driving while intoxicated.

Drowsy driving is especially dangerous for health care workers whose natural sleep patterns may be disrupted by working nights or long, irregular hours.

Fortunately, their employers can take advantage of resources that are available from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The “Wake Up and Get Some Sleep” program, developed by NHTSA in collaboration with the National Center on Sleep Disorders, is designed for organizations that employ workers whose schedule differs from the typical “9 to 5” workday. The goals are to increase awareness of the dangers of drowsy driving, help improve the quality of sleep and reduce sleepiness, and ultimately, reduce the incidence of drowsy driving.

Employers may go online to order materials, which include one employer/administrator’s guide, “Preventing Drowsy Driving among Shift Workers," including a PowerPoint training and education session, and one “Wake Up and Get Some Sleep” video.

Also available are a set of six "Better Sleep" posters for the workplace; a set of 50 "Sick and Tired of Waking Up Sick and Tired?" brochures for shift workers; 50 "A Wake-Up Call for the Whole Family" brochures for shift work families; and 50 "The Top 10 Tips for Shift Workers" tip cards. The order form can be downloaded here and faxed or mailed to NHTSA.

Although NHTSA limits the number of materials that can be ordered, camera-ready artwork and a master video can be ordered to reproduce larger quantities as needed.

Concerns about the dangers for health care employees of driving while sleepy were raised at the 2007 MMA Annual Meeting. The House of Delegates adopted a resolution, submitted by the Committee on Public Health and Preventive Medicine, calling on the MMA to support the education of health care employers and their employees on the dangers and health consequences of driving while sleep deprived and to encourage employers to distribute information items on the dangers of drowsy driving and ways to promote alertness in the workplace such as the Wake Up and Get Some Sleep campaign.

Watch for more articles on the dangers of drowsy driving.