Saving Tired Cops Stopping Drowsy Driving Bryan Vila

Saving Tired Cops Stopping Drowsy Driving Bryan Vila, Ph. D. Professor, Washington State University Wake Up, Michigan! Symposium Grand Rapids, Michigan September 20, 2007 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Major issues • Hazards of too-tired police • Tired cops (causes and consequences) • How do we turn this problem into an asset for fighting drowsy driving? 2 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Just up the road… 3 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

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Tough venue for social change • U. S. has 17, 784 independent police agencies + As diverse as America itself + ~800, 000 sworn, mostly autonomous officers • Most agencies have substantial fatigue problems. + > 50% of all cops have serious sleep problems. 6 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Cops sleep less, drive drowsy • 53% of police get less than 6. 5 hours of sleep daily + Only 30% of general population gets so little sleep • 2004 survey of 2, 269 U. S. & Canadian officers about on-duty fatigue found: + 91% reported being fatigued routinely + 85% reported driving while drowsy + 39% reported falling asleep at the wheel + 75% said more officer education is needed on how to avoid drowsy driving 7 5/20/2021 for Traffic. Bryan Vila, 2004) Ph. D. (NSF 2001, AAA Foundation Safety

Police Officer Death Rates 1974 -2005 (FBI, LEOKA, 1974 -2005) 8 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Key causes of police fatigue • Long and irregular work hours due to: + Overtime assignments + Off-duty court appearances + Moonlighting • Shift work • Job stress • Inadequate sleep • Time-on-task effects 9 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Port Authority Example (Ron Marisco, N. J. Star Ledger, May 14, 2003: 1, 10 22) 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Frequency (N=298) 60 41% of Officers Sleep Poorly 50 40 Clinical sleep pathology likely 30 20 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 11 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D. PSQI Score ( Vila et al. 2000)

Tired Cops study* 4 agencies, 397 officers, 59, 000 potential work days • • 14% reported always or usually being tired at beginning of their shifts 18% reported having a problem with motivation during the past month 16% reported frequent trouble staying awake while driving, eating, or during social activities Officers routinely exceeded U. S. work-hour standards for power plant operators & truck drivers 12*Vila et al. , 5/20/2021 2000, NIJ grant 96 -IJ-CX-0046 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Short-term impact of fatigue • • Decreases attentiveness Impairs physical and cognitive functioning Worsens mood Fuels a vicious cycle: + Fatigue reduces ability to deal with stress + Stress reduces ability to deal with fatigue + Stress & fatigue increase vulnerability to disease 13 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Fatigue vs. alcohol impairment • Laboratory comparisons: + Effect of fatigue vs. alcohol on alertness, cognition, motor speed, hand-eye coordination & task accuracy • Results: + 17 to 19 hours awake equivalent to. 05 BAC + 24 hours awake equivalent to 0. 10% BAC Note Fatigue + Booze Synergy 14 (Williamson & Feyer 2000, Dawson & Reid 1997) 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Sleep and cognition (Results from 2 -3 min. serial addition/subtraction test every 2 hrs. ) Sleep and circadian phase are the primary causes of fatigue among healthy individuals. 15 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Sleep restriction and vigilance Baseline Sleep Restriction 16 5/20/2021 Recovery Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Sleep and performance • Sleep is essential for sustaining a soldier's performance on the battlefield • Soldiers awake for 48 to 72 hours still may be able to hit a target + But their ability to tell friend from foe declines rapidly with lack of sleep • Costly mistakes, including friendly fire casualties, increase as sleep decreases. 17 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

PET Study of Sleep Deprivation 18 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Poor sleep worse sleep • • Chronic lack of adequate, good-quality sleep can cause serious, chronic health problems: + Cardiovascular disease + Gastrointestinal disease + Metabolic and mood disorders All degrade sleep quality… 19 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Police mortality study results Studies of 2, 693 police officers employed by Buffalo, N. Y. PD for 5+ years from 1950 -90 • Death rates from cancer, cirrhosis of the liver, suicide and diabetes are much higher than in general population • Buffalo police retirees died ~7 years earlier than other municipal retirees We’re working out exact causes now… 20 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Officer suicide Officer Death Causes Average Deaths/100 K • Suicides underreported. Felonious 13. 0 & suicide ideation Accidents, duty 12. 7 Suicide US Army 2006 high (Adult suicide, age 18 -44) + Accompanied by depression • BCOPS study: Depression & suicide ideation increased in…* + Male officers: as overtime increases + Female officers: with more frequent work-schedule changes 17. 0 17. 3 *n=105 randomly selected BPD officers, stratified by sex, 30 F, 45 M (13. 4) Sources: LEOKA, BJS, Violanti, Do. D, CDC 21 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Problem summary • Many police officers are overly tired. • Fatigue impairs parts of the brain used for: + Clear thinking & problem solving + Making difficult moral choices + Using technology + Dealing with people + Dealing with stress • The right approach to fatigue management can protect both officers and their communities. 22 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Employee Employer Managing alertness inside agencies Causes of officer fatigue: • Sleep disruption & overwork due to: + Shift work & schedule changes + Overtime & extra shifts + Off-duty court appearances + Moonlighting • Recreational, family & personal activities Work schedules deeply affect officers’ lives, include officers in policy development! 23 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Fatigue countermeasures education Managers Officers & families • Fatigue safety & health • Allocate people well: issues + Minimize shift rotation + Take individual + “Alertness edge” importance + Diet, exercise & personal habits + Circadian phase affects alertness differences into account + Minimize overtime & long work hours + Choose a schedule that fits • Use of naps, caffeine • Fatigue-management and ‘alertness switches’ technology use Build a culture that values fitness for duty by… 24 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Making officers agents for change… • Integrate fatigue management into officers’ lives as they: + Educate people about drowsy driving + Enforce traffic laws/investigate crashes + Act as role models + Reinforce fitness for duty as a core team value 25 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.

Involve police in research • Collect data on: + Fatigue-related crashes + Work hours, hours awake, etc. + For the public & for themselves • Participate in research studies 26 5/20/2021 Bryan Vila, Ph. D.