Association between sleep quality and quality of life among resident doctors in a tertiary hospital in Nigeria: a cross-sectional study

Background: Sleep quality is a term in mental health that continues to attract scholarly reviews across interdisciplinary domains due to its dominant influence on human health. It is crucial to physical and mental health and directly impacts quality of life. As a result of the dearth of literature on sleep quality, this study determines the association between sleep quality and QOL among resident doctors in Nigeria. Methods: This cross-sectional analytic study was part of a larger study among resident doctors at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital, Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria, between August 2015 and February 2016. Chi-square test and logistic regression were done where appropriate. Results: A total of 208 participants were recruited, of which 96 (46.2%) were found to have poor sleep quality. The prevalence of poor sleep quality varied across medical specialties and cadres of seniority. Although it was more common among female participants than males, no statistically significant association was found between sleep quality and demographic factors such as age, sex, marital status or ethnicity (p>0.05). However, there was a statistically significant relationship between sleep quality and certain work-related factors, including being in a specific specialty, holding the position of senior registrar, and having spent 12-24 months in residency (χ2:10.962; p=0.004, χ2:5.283; p=0.022, χ2:15.137; p=0.002 respectively). Conclusions: The findings of this study indicate a high prevalence of poor sleep quality among resident doctors, suggesting that the rigorous residency training may negatively impact their sleep quality.