Fatigue Risk Management

What is Fatigue Risk Management?

Fatigue Risk Management systems contain the following elements. Education about fatigue underpins them all.

Acknowledgement

…that there are situations where it is not possible to avoid fatigue altogether — for example, night working is a necessity for many who work in healthcare, and this will inevitably mean that staff are fatigued.

Prediction

…of circumstances where fatigue is likely to occur — for example, long shifts, night working, inability to take breaks, high intensity workload, multiple consecutive days at work without time off to rest and recover.

Prevention

…where possible, to avoid the factors mentioned above. Encourage good sleep hygiene and introduce strategies to ensure staff have access to regular breaks. Provide appropriate rest facilities and alternative means of transport home when staff are too tired to drive, such as taxis.

Identification

…of fatigued individuals, using fatigue rating scales and handover tools.

Management & Mitigation

…by avoiding routine tasks that are not time-sensitive (e.g. stocking up) at times of predicted or identified fatigue; encouragement of adoption of preventative strategies; ensuring adequate time to recover from fatigue.

Monitoring

…of fatigue-related incidents and unhelpful practices which do not support the above principles. The risk register could be used to chart progress.