Food Components to Enhance Performance


Book Description

The physiological or psychological stresses that employees bring to their workplace affect not only their own performance but that of their co-workers and others. These stresses are often compounded by those of the job itself. Medical personnel, firefighters, police, and military personnel in combat settingsâ€"among othersâ€"experience highly unpredictable timing and types of stressors. This book reviews and comments on the performance-enhancing potential of specific food components. It reflects the views of military and non-military scientists from such fields as neuroscience, nutrition, physiology, various medical specialties, and performance psychology on the most up-to-date research available on physical and mental performance enhancement in stressful conditions. Although placed within the context of military tasks, the volume will have wide-reaching implications for individuals in any job setting.




Sleep Disorders and Sleep Deprivation


Book Description

Clinical practice related to sleep problems and sleep disorders has been expanding rapidly in the last few years, but scientific research is not keeping pace. Sleep apnea, insomnia, and restless legs syndrome are three examples of very common disorders for which we have little biological information. This new book cuts across a variety of medical disciplines such as neurology, pulmonology, pediatrics, internal medicine, psychiatry, psychology, otolaryngology, and nursing, as well as other medical practices with an interest in the management of sleep pathology. This area of research is not limited to very young and old patientsâ€"sleep disorders reach across all ages and ethnicities. Sleep Disorders and Sleep Deprivation presents a structured analysis that explores the following: Improving awareness among the general public and health care professionals. Increasing investment in interdisciplinary somnology and sleep medicine research training and mentoring activities. Validating and developing new and existing technologies for diagnosis and treatment. This book will be of interest to those looking to learn more about the enormous public health burden of sleep disorders and sleep deprivation and the strikingly limited capacity of the health care enterprise to identify and treat the majority of individuals suffering from sleep problems.




Technical Report


Book Description




Sleep Loss and Its Effects on Performance


Book Description

The effects of sleep loss on human task performance are discussed under total, partial, and selective deprivations of sleep. Some of the frequently used psychological tasks in studies of total sleep loss are described in sufficient detail so that experimenters could choose, on the basis of materials presented in this monograph, adequate tasks to fit their experimental objectives. Factors which play critical roles in determining the degree of task sensitivity to total sleep loss are listed. Effects of shortened hours of sleep on human task performance are discussed. Effects of selected sleep deprivation on performance are also commented upon. The commentary is followed by a bibliography on sleep deprivation with author and subject indices.




Commercial Motor Vehicle Driver Fatigue, Long-Term Health, and Highway Safety


Book Description

There are approximately 4,000 fatalities in crashes involving trucks and buses in the United States each year. Though estimates are wide-ranging, possibly 10 to 20 percent of these crashes might have involved fatigued drivers. The stresses associated with their particular jobs (irregular schedules, etc.) and the lifestyle that many truck and bus drivers lead, puts them at substantial risk for insufficient sleep and for developing short- and long-term health problems. Commercial Motor Vehicle Driver Fatigue, Long-Term Health and Highway Safety assesses the state of knowledge about the relationship of such factors as hours of driving, hours on duty, and periods of rest to the fatigue experienced by truck and bus drivers while driving and the implications for the safe operation of their vehicles. This report evaluates the relationship of these factors to drivers' health over the longer term, and identifies improvements in data and research methods that can lead to better understanding in both areas.




The Effects of a 48-hour Period of Sustained Field Activity on Tank Crew Performance


Book Description

A 48-hour field experiment was conducted to determine the effects of sustained activity on the performance of tank crews in communication, driving, surveillance, gunnery, and maintenance activities. Moving surveillance and some driving activities showed statistically significant performance deterioration over a 48-hour period of work without sleep. The experiment showed that the diurnal rhythm of the subjects did not affect performance significantly. The results of the experiment support a broad conclusion that tank crews using present equipment can maintain operational proficiency during 48 hours of sustained activity.




Patient Safety and Quality


Book Description

"Nurses play a vital role in improving the safety and quality of patient car -- not only in the hospital or ambulatory treatment facility, but also of community-based care and the care performed by family members. Nurses need know what proven techniques and interventions they can use to enhance patient outcomes. To address this need, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), with additional funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, has prepared this comprehensive, 1,400-page, handbook for nurses on patient safety and quality -- Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses. (AHRQ Publication No. 08-0043)." - online AHRQ blurb, http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/nurseshdbk/




Stress and Performance Effectiveness


Book Description

First published in 1982. This is Volume III of a three-volume series and focuses on stress and performance effectiveness. This series of volumes reviews the state of the art in several areas of human performance research. These areas are human capability assessment, information processing and decision making, and job stress. It was recognized that these have been active research areas, but work in these areas has not previously been linked directly to national concerns about productivity. The focus is on implications for improving productivity and for recommending research in these areas that should have impact on productivity.







Sleep Deprivation


Book Description

Exploring the wide array of structures, substances, and environments that are primary factors in the initiation or inhibition of sleep, this reference highlights key findings from respected professionals around the globe on the social and economic burden of impaired performance, productivity, and safety arising from sleep deprivation-studying pharm