Sleep Quality of Patients on a General Department During the First Days of Hospitalization

Hana Locihová,1,2 Darja Jarošová,2 Karolína Šrámková,3 Jana Slonkova,3,4 Renáta Zoubková,1,5 Klára Maternová,6 Karel Sonka7 1Department of Anesthesiology, Resuscitation and Intensive Care Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic; 2Department of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic; 3Department of Neurology, University Hospital Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic; 4Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic; 5Department of Anesthesiology, Resuscitation and Intensive Care Medicine, University Hospital Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic; 6 2nd Department of Surgery – Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University and General University Hospital, Prague, Czech Republic; 7Department of Neurology and Center of Clinical Neuroscience, First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University and General University Hospital, Prague, Czech RepublicCorrespondence: Hana Locihová, Department of Anesthesiology, Resuscitation and Intensive Care Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic, Tel +00420739026151, Email [email protected]: The main aim of the study was to record subjective assessment of sleep quality between men and woman in hospitalised patients over 3 nights and look for associations with other basic hospitalisation data (age, type of department, surgery, pain, type of admission, previous hospitalisation, sleep-inducing medication). The secondary aim was to determine whether the Ford Insomnia Response to Stress Test (FIRST) questionnaire is an appropriate tool for identifying hospitalised individuals prone to situational sleep disturbance.Methods: A multicentre descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in regular surgical and medical departments of seven selected hospitals in the Czech Republic. On the first day of hospitalization, patients completed the FIRST screening questionnaire. Their subjectively perceived sleep quality for the previous night was assessed from the second to the fourth day of hospitalization using the Richards-Campbell Sleep Questionnaire (RCSQ).Results: The study included 340 patients (172 females and 168 males; mean age 58.9 ± 14.9 years and 57.3 ± 15.0 years, respectively). No significant differences in RCSQ scores were observed between men and women or across the three nights of hospitalization. Moderate correlations were identified between hospitalization data and RCSQ scores, with the strongest positive correlation for alprazolam use (Ra = 0.604). Other positive correlations included surgical department hospitalization, sleep-inducing medications, surgery, male sex, and age. The strongest negative correlation was with pain (Ra = − 0.498), while other negative correlations included elective admission, medical department hospitalization, and previous hospitalization. The studied factors explained 18% of the RCSQ variability. The association between FIRST scores and RCSQ was statistically significant (p < 0.001) but weak (Spearman’s − 0.1734, Kendall’s tau − 0.1234).Conclusion: Subjective sleep quality during hospitalization is related to the type of department, care provided, and pain, age, and sex. There were no significant changes in subjective sleep quality ratings during the first three days of hospitalization. The FIRST questionnaire is not a suitable screening tool for identifying individuals with situational sleep disturbance in hospital.Keywords: sleep quality, hospitalized patients, general department, Richards-Campbell Sleep Questionnaire, RCSQ, Ford Insomnia Response to Stress Test, FIRST