Getting sleep in the hospital

If you or any of your loved ones has ever been hospitalized, one of the complaints you may have heard about most is how hard it is to sleep in the hospital. There are lots of things about hospital routines that can make things difficult for patients to sleep, besides noise and illness. While some hospitals have taken steps to ensure that patients are not interrupted unnecessarily at night, this is not universal. Here are some things you can expect, and some steps you might be able to take to help the hospital give you a better night’s rest. Some reasons you might be woken at night might be unavoidable You might be on a particular medication, such as certain antibiotics, that must be given in the middle of the night, depending on when the first dose was given, and blood tests for levels of some antibiotics must be timed to their dosing, resulting in blood draws in the middle of the night, too. If you are admitted to check for a heart attack, you might also be ordered for timed blood tests that might involve having your blood drawn in the middle of the night. Vital signs, such as pulse and blood pressure, are required to be taken every four hours for some conditions, which would also awaken you. One study shows the top thing keeping patients awake is pain, followed by vital signs and tests, noise, and medications. Studies have also shown that hospital routines can disrupt patient sleep, and having a designated quiet time, where nonessential tasks are minimized and lights and ...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Fatigue Health care Medical Research Sleep Source Type: blogs