DriverTiredness

Kills

Aims of the training

• To raise your awareness of the dangers of driver tiredness

• To challenge some of the myths we have about driver tiredness

• To provide effective countermeasures to enable you to cope with the problem

Background

• Most people don’t take sleep seriously

• Tiredness is seen as a weakness

• Most of us don’t get enough sleep

• Sleep is not ‘cool’

• Staying awake is seen as macho, cool, young

…just a little bit further……just a little bit further…

QUIZ

Fatigue and tiredness – what’s the difference?

Fatigue:

• Impairment due to prolonged physical or mental work • Solution: rest (not necessarily sleep)

Tiredness:• The likelihood of falling asleep • Solution: sleep (rest is not sufficient)

• Causes more than 20% of motorway

accidents

• Most frequent cause of accidental

death of truck drivers

• Accidents worse - high speed, no

avoidance

• 3 times more likely to result in death

or serious injury

• Those with sleep problems are twice as likely to have an accident at work

Facts and figures

Facts and figures

Annual Average Probability of Occupational Fatality:

Deep Sea Fishing 1 in 750

Coal Mining 1 in 7,100

Car Driving (25,000 miles/year) 1 in 8,000

Construction 1 in 10,000

Agriculture 1 in 13,500

Service Industries 1 in 150,000   

Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents

Performance after 18 hours of wakefulness

is comparable to that of a drunk driver.

Driver Tiredness kills

Number of tiredness-related fatal road accidents across a 24 hour period

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

0000-0100 0300-0400 0600-0700 0900-1000 1200-1300 1500-1600 1800-1900 2100-2200

Hour of day

Act

ual n

umbe

r of

sle

ep r

elat

ed a

ccid

ents

When do tiredness-related accidents occur?

• Shift workers

- especially on the first night shift

• Driving home after a night shift

• Truck drivers

• Company car drivers

• Men

- particularly aged 18-24 and 40+

• Skilled manual workers

Who is most at risk?

Causes of Driver TirednessCauses of Driver Tiredness

• We cannot live without sleep• We need about 7-8 hours of sleep every day• Not enough sleep leads to:

• attention difficulties• slower reaction times• slower, muddled thinking • erratic speed control • sloppy steering

• Effects of sleep loss build up• Recovery usually takes 2 full nights of sleep

Sleep is vital

The body clock

▪ minimum alertness▪ poor performance

▪ maximum alertness▪ maximum performance

early morning

siesta time

04000400 05005000

06000600 07000700

Time of day (hours)Time of day (hours)

Stage 3Stage 3

24002400 01000100 02000200 03000300

Wake Wake

REMREM

Stage 1Stage 1

Stage 2 Stage 2

Stage 4 Stage 4

A good night’s sleep ….A good night’s sleep ….

Alcohol• causes early morning awakening and disturbed sleep• worsens existing sleepiness

Sleeping pills • Designed for “short-term” use• effects can last too long and make you sleepy at work• can have side effects• smallest dose, shortest time, supervised by your doctor

Alcohol, drugs & sleep

Over-the-counter medicines

• Bought without prescription, but many can cause significant daytime sleepiness

• Remedies for:

- Colds and flu

- Allergies (e.g. Hay fever)

- Travel sickness

• Often contain medicine used to aid sleep

Obstructive Sleep Apnoea

• Large neck (collar size over 43 cm/17 inches)

• Overweight

• Men, aged over 50

• Heavy snoring

• Choking during sleep

• Daytime sleepiness

Sleep apnoea affects 5% of the general population and at least 20% of truck drivers

Sleep ApnoeaSleep Apnoea

…time for a break

Group discussion

• Have you ever felt yourself falling asleep at the wheel?

• What happened?

• What do you do to cope with driver tiredness?

Myths

“HIGHWAY HYPNOSIS”

Doesn’t exist - just another name for falling asleep

Won’t stop you falling

asleep at the wheel

• Sucking lemons

• Sticking pins in your wrist

• Holding money out of the window

• Recounting past romances

• Shaking your head violently

• Putting your hair up in the sun roof

These will not keep you awake

Myths about tiredness

“Cold air will keep me awake”

The Facts are:

• Cold air on your face will not keep you awake

• … nor will listening to the radio,

• …. or chewing gum,

• …. or stretching the legs

• Willpower will not keep you awake

“I’ve been this tired before, and I can cope”

The Facts are:

• When you are sleepy- you over-estimate your alertness- your judgment is not as good

• Microsleeps are uncontrollable and inevitable

• Determination won’t stop you from falling asleep

• It is harder to cope with shift work as you get older

Myths about tiredness

Effective counter

measures

Shared responsibilities

Organisational Individual

Health and safety workload & breaks shift duration type of work

Fitness to work sleep not just rest medical condition medication

Work organisation shift scheduling work predictability pay system

Life outside work family responsibilities commuting lifestyle

• Eat a balanced diet

• Don’t go to bed too full or too hungry

• Avoid caffeine/alcohol before bed

• To relax, have a warm bath or shower before bed

• Exercise regularly, but not just before bedtime

A healthy lifestyle

Dark room - mask/heavy curtains

Quiet room - turn off the phone- ‘Do not disturb’ sign on front door - ear plugs- white noise machines (e.g. fan)

Cool temperature – c. 18 degrees centigrade

Comfortable bed – firm, supporting, check condition

The ideal sleep environment

Plan your journey and take a break every 2 hours

• If you are feeling tired STOP DRIVING

• Park somewhere safe

• Call your scheduler if necessary

• Have a couple of cups of strong coffee / caffeine

drink

• Followed by a 15-20 minute nap

Remember that this is an emergency measure

On the road

• Use caffeine to increase alertness when you need it

• Takes about 20 minutes to have an effect

• Don’t use it when you are already alert

• Avoid caffeine near bedtime

• Don’t dehydrate – drink water too

• Effects can be long lasting - know your own limits

• Use caffeine to increase alertness when you need it

• Takes about 20 minutes to have an effect

• Don’t use it when you are already alert

• Avoid caffeine near bedtime

• Don’t dehydrate – drink water too

• Effects can be long lasting - know your own limits

Use of caffeine

The Power NapThe Power Nap

When would you take a break from driving?

• You find it difficult to concentrate?

• You keep adjusting your driving position?

• You are repeatedly stretching and yawning?

• Your head is nodding?

• You are fighting to keep your eyes open?

When:

Willpower and sleepWillpower and sleep

Now … when would you take a break?

• Finding it difficult to concentrate

• Adjusting driving position

• Stretching and yawning

• Head nodding

• Fighting to keep eyes open

Minutes from home?

• The journey home is a high risk time for falling asleep at the wheel

• Many accidents occur close to destinations• We naturally relax and unwind after a long day and

as we get close to home

• Gives the body a signal that it is safe to sleep

• Don’t be tempted to push on - STOP. Take a break.

• Get the best sleep possible before starting your shift

• When working shift work

- try to get as much sleep as you would on a day off

- ask your family to help you get adequate sleep

- when on nights, try not to delay this sleep to later in the day

• Listen to your body

- if you feel sleepy and circumstances allow - sleep!

At home: getting enough sleep

QUIZ

Let’s get an early start …Let’s get an early start …

• Fatigue has biological causes

• The effects of sleep loss build up

• If you ignore sleepiness, in the end you will fall asleep uncontrollably

• Two full nights in a row of good sleep are needed for recovery

• The body clock programmes us to sleep at night

• The body clock does not adapt to night work

• There is no single, simple answer to fatigue problems

• These are recommendations – find what works for you

Improve your own situation … now!!!

Key Points - Summary

How long will you Survive?

No food – 3 to 4 weeksNo water – 3 to 4 days

No shelter – 3 to 4 hours

No sleep when driving- 3 to 4 seconds

Your safety is our goal