Fighting Fatigue

TSRA and TSDA are pleased to make available Fighting Fatigue: A Guide for Cardiothoracic Surgery Residents. This free download is provided to help cardiothoracic surgery residents navigate their way through long days and long nights throughout their training.

Working at night is an essential part of providing a comprehensive 24-hour service to patients. However, night work requires residents to remain awake and alert when physiologically programmed to be asleep. Many residents may take 24-hour calls or primary night calls on certain rotations, and, on these occasions, residents can expect to stay away and working throughout the entire night.

The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) Resident Duty Hours Standards were introduced to help protect patients and residents. This Guide does not deal with the appropriateness of the Resident Duty Hours Standards, rather it is designed to provide useful advice to residents working late at night.

The aim of the Guide is to provide simple advice on how to prepare to work at night. It includes guidance on managing sleep at home, staying as alert and refreshed as possible while on duty at night, and how to recover from working nights in the most efficient and effective way. Although the Guide has been written with those working extended night or on-call rotations in mind, much of the advice is applicable to those residents taking more prolonged calls.

Click here to download your free copy.