Recognising and mitigating staff fatigue

To see our latest courses, or to donate to the St Mark's Hospital Foundation, please visit our channel description for details. Title: Recognising and mitigating staff fatigue Speaker: Nancy Redfern Event: St Mark's Academic Institute Grand Round Year: 2026 Nancy Redfern, a consultant anaesthetist in Newcastle and founding member of the Healthcare Fatigue Forum, presented the significant risks of staff fatigue to healthcare professionals, patient safety and organisational performance. Her work was motivated by the tragic death of a trainee doctor who died in a road traffic collision while driving home after night shifts. Subsequent surveys revealed that 57% of trainee anaesthetists and 45% of nurses and midwives had experienced an accident or near miss while driving home fatigued. Further research highlighted the prevalence of micro-sleeps, impaired concentration and dangerous driving among healthcare staff. The presentation distinguishes between tiredness, fatigue and exhaustion, emphasising that fatigue is a physiological condition that reduces performance and decision-making ability. Sleep deprivation accumulates over successive nights, while individuals frequently underestimate its effects on their cognitive and physical capabilities. Fatigue can impair vigilance, judgement, communication, emotional regulation and psychomotor skills, increasing the likelihood of clinical errors, medication mistakes and adverse patient outcomes. It also negatively affects staff wellbeing, mental health, family relationships and long-term physical health. Redfern argues that healthcare organisations must move beyond viewing fatigue as an individual responsibility or an unavoidable consequence of shift work. Other safety-critical industries, including aviation and rail, routinely implement fatigue risk management systems. Healthcare should adopt similar evidence-based, risk-focused approaches rather than relying solely on compliance with working-time regulations. Recommended interventions include providing appropriate rest facilities, encouraging short restorative naps, promoting effective sleep practices, using caffeine strategically, improving rota design and educating staff and managers about fatigue. Organisational commitment, supportive workplace cultures, effective supervision and systematic monitoring were identified as essential components of successful fatigue management. The presentation also highlights the importance of collecting data, incorporating fatigue into organisational risk registers, investigating fatigue-related incidents and evaluating interventions. Collaboration between healthcare professionals, patients, researchers and other safety-critical industries was encouraged to develop sustainable solutions. In conclusion, Redfern emphasises that recognising fatigue as a predictable and manageable safety risk is essential. A proactive, organisation-wide approach can protect staff wellbeing, reduce preventable harm and improve patient safety across healthcare services.