By Carole Moore
Garbage bags on the windows, white noise running in the background and over-the-counter sleep aids: Worn-out officers have tried just about everything in their quest to grab a few Z's.
Rotating shifts — working days one week and midnights the next — can lead to a jumbled body clock and an even worse disposition. Short of drinking on the job, there's little more debilitating to an officer's performance than sheer exhaustion.
Sure, it's a given cops won't always have enough sleep. But putting in long hours on a drug round-up, homicide or even a natural disaster are the kinds of details fueled by equal jolts of enthusiasm and adrenaline. Shift work — especially rotating shifts — go beyond the occasional and become a lifestyle. But one that's very dark and draining and can lead to health problems, bad judgment and short tempers.
Garbage bags on the windows, white noise running in the background and over-the-counter sleep aids: Worn-out officers have tried just about everything in their quest to grab a few Z's.
Rotating shifts — working days one week and midnights the next — can lead to a jumbled body clock and an even worse disposition. Short of drinking on the job, there's little more debilitating to an officer's performance than sheer exhaustion.
Sure, it's a given cops won't always have enough sleep. But putting in long hours on a drug round-up, homicide or even a natural disaster are the kinds of details fueled by equal jolts of enthusiasm and adrenaline. Shift work — especially rotating shifts — go beyond the occasional and become a lifestyle. But one that's very dark and draining and can lead to health problems, bad judgment and short tempers.
No comments:
Post a Comment