A avaliação da qualidade do sono de profissionais da saúde que atuam com pacientes em reabilitação em Teresina, PI

Abstract

Sleep is a basic, physiological, and innate necessity for all human beings. As a fundamental characteristic for maintaining life, the hours spent sleeping help regulate the responses of the physiological metabolism of living beings. The minimum hours of sleep required for proper maintenance of these systems can vary according to age, sex, and professional activity (Oliveira et al., 2024). Moreover, sleep is also important for individual health as it aids in the detoxification processes, playing a crucial role in immune, cardiovascular, reproductive, and endocrine reactions (Silva et al., 2022).

Most healthcare professionals often face extensive work hours, which, in addition to being exhausting due to the large time demands, also require significant psychological effort, as these workers are constantly dealing with the lives and quality of life of others. This intense and prolonged stress can affect endocrine axes related to the production of testosterone and cortisol, altering the physiological levels of these hormones in the body, potentially aggravating any existing sleep disorders or triggering the onset of new ones (Mohammadi et al., 2020).

The human body's response to the circadian rhythm is directly influenced by the relationship between the sleep hormone melatonin and the light-dark cycles. That is, the production of melatonin in relation to low environmental light has a direct impact on sleep quality (Oliveira et al., 2024). During periods when work demands and patient loads increased drastically, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare professionals experienced a direct impact on their sleep quality, with a prevalence of sleep disorders of 44%, with a lower proportion in females and a lower prevalence in Chinese studies (Marvaldi et al., 2021).

Among healthcare professionals with high work demands, those working with rehabilitation patients stand out. This is because rehabilitation work is repetitive, daily, and continuous, requiring persistent attendance over long periods to avoid losing progress in patient care. These patients with chronic illnesses require constant support from the entire multidisciplinary team (doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, physical educators, speech therapists, psychologists, nursing technicians, etc.), which may be correlated with a higher frequency of sleep disorders in this group of workers.

Based on the above, we observe an intrinsic relationship between sleep quality and high work demands. In order for the population requiring rehabilitation to have access to a quality healthcare system, it is essential that the professionals have the conditions to perform their duties well. In this regard, quality sleep is fundamental, and documenting data on sleep disorders in this population can help create a profile of sleep among these workers, allowing for a better understanding of the overall situation of this subgroup of professionals.