Fighting fire and fatigue: sleep quantity and quality during multi-day wildfire suppression

This study examined firefighters' sleep quantity and quality throughout multi-day wildfire suppression, and assessed the impact of sleep location, shift length, shift start time and incident severity on these variables. For 4 weeks, 40 volunteer firefighters' sleep was assessed using wrist actigraphy. Analyses revealed that the quantity of sleep obtained on fire days was restricted, and pre- and post-sleep fatigue ratings were higher, compared to non-fire days. On fire days, total sleep time was less when: (i) sleep location was in a tent or vehicle, (ii) shifts were greater than 14 h and (iii) shifts started between 05:00 and 06:00 h. This is the first empirical investigation providing objective evidence that firefighters' sleep is restricted during wildfire suppression. Furthermore, sleep location, shift length and shift start time should be targeted when designing appropriate controls to manage fatigue-related risk and preserve firefighters' health and safety during wildfire events. Practitioner Summary: During multi-day wildfire suppression, firefighters' sleep quantity was restricted, and pre- and post-sleep fatigue ratings were higher, compared to non-fire days. Furthermore, total sleep time was less when: (i) sleep occurred in a tent/vehicle, (ii) shifts were >14 h and (iii) shifts started between 05:00 and 06:00 h.

Building the capacity of family day care educators to promote children’s social and emotional wellbeing: Results of an exploratory cluster randomised-controlled trial

© 2015 Early Childhood Australia Inc. All rights reserved. THIS PAPER PRESENTS THE results of an exploratory cluster randomised-controlled trial that was used to pilot Thrive, a capacity-building program for family day care (FDC) educators. Participants were educators and coordinators from one FDC service in Melbourne, Australia. Data collection consisted of a survey including information on costs, an in-home quality of care observation and process evaluation. Data was collected over 12 months (2011–2012), at baseline and one, six and 12 months post-intervention. Positive caregiver interaction scores increased over time for the intervention group: F (3, 51.69) = 3.08, p < 0.05, and detached interaction scores decreased over time: F (3, 51.19) = 2.78, p < 0.05. Educators’ knowledge and confidence in children’s social and emotional wellbeing showed no significant change. Thrive gives important information about the challenges FDC educators face and is relevant to implementing changes in their education and support. For a program like Thrive to be successful in engaging educators, a stronger framework for supporting additional learning activities at both the FDC organisational and scheme level is warranted.

The acute physiological stress response to an emergency alarm and mobilization during the day and at night

The purpose of this study was to investigate the acute physiological stress response to an emergency alarm and mobilization during the day and at night. Sixteen healthy males aged 25 ± 4 years (mean ± SD) spent four consecutive days and nights in a sleep laboratory. This research used a within-participants design with repeated measures for time, alarm condition (alarm or control), and trial (day or night). When an alarm sounded, participants were required to mobilize immediately. Saliva samples for cortisol analysis were collected 0 min, 15 min, 30 min, 45 min, 60 min, 90 min, and 120 min after mobilization, and at corresponding times in control conditions. Heart rate was measured continuously throughout the study. Heart rate was higher in the day (F20,442 = 9.140, P < 0.001) and night (F23,459 = 8.356, P < 0.001) alarm conditions compared to the respective control conditions. There was no difference in saliva cortisol between day alarm and day control conditions. Cortisol was higher (F6,183 = 2.450, P < 0.001) following the night alarm and mobilization compared to the night control condition. The magnitude of difference in cortisol between night control and night alarm conditions was greater (F6,174 = 4.071, P < 0.001) than the magnitude of difference between the day control and day alarm conditions. The augmented heart rate response to the day and night alarms supports previous observations in field settings. Variations in the cortisol responses between conditions across the day and night may relate to differences in participants' ability to interpret the alarm when sleeping versus when awake.

November 2006: Veterans Day

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September 2006: Constitution Day

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September 2007: U.S. Constitution Day

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November 2008: Thanksgiving Day

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Constitution Day: September 17, 2008 - Contest

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September 2009: United States Constitution Day

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September 2010: Constitution Day

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Think Globally - Act Locally: Earth Day 1990 / Norman Clayton

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