Trends in Nurses' Sleep: A Meta-Regression Involving 219,245 Nurses From 45 Countries.

AIM: To examine temporal trends in nurses' sleep duration and quality. BACKGROUND: In recent decades, the nursing workplace demands have intensified. This is thought to have contributed to a decline in nurses' sleep duration and quality. Despite concerns, it remains unclear if nurses' sleep has changed. METHOD: A systematic database search was used to identify studies reporting nurses' total sleep time or sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index [PSQI]). Trends in mean sleep duration and global PSQI scores were analysed using generalised linear regression models adjusted for age, sex, geographic region, shift type and measurement method (self-report vs. actigraphy). RESULTS: Data were extracted from 280 studies representing 219,245 nurses. A significant decline of 28.7 min was observed in sleep duration (95% CI: 26.2, 33.1, standardised effect size [ES]: 0.43) between 1985 and 2022, while a 1.6-point increase in global PSQI scores was observed between 1990 and 2023, indicative of poorer sleep quality (95% CI: 1.47, 1.77, ES: 0.49). CONCLUSION: These findings suggest a decline in nurses' sleep duration and quality over recent decades. These trends suggest that targeted interventions may be needed to improve nurses' sleep health. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: Temporal declines in nurses' sleep duration and quality may reflect an increased risk of fatigue, impaired clinical performance, staff burnout and work-related accidents. This study provides important insights into workforce well-being and highlights the need for nurse managers to recognise staff susceptibility to poor sleep and proactively develop and implement strategies that promote healthy sleep.