"Ronn!Blankenship" wrote:
>
> At 02:00 PM 6/5/03 -0500, Reggie Bautista wrote:
> >>On 5 Jun 2003 at 7:09, Ronn!Blankenship wrote:
> >>
> >> > At 02:57 AM 6/5/03 -0500, The Fool wrote:
> >> > >http://www.cnn.com/2003/HEALTH/conditions/06/04/cancer.nightshifts.re
> >> > >ut/
> >> > >
> >> > >Nurses who work regular night shifts have a higher risk of colon
> >> > >cancer, a study found, suggesting a relationship between the amount
> >> > >of sunlight exposure and the cancer.
> >> >
> >> > So presumably the solution is to let the patients just fend for
> >> > themselves until morning . . .
> >
> >Andy responded:
> >>...provide deacent lighting...
> >
> >Rotate shifts and spread the risk around.
>
> A study that came out several years ago (too long ago for me to recall the
> reference, sorry) came to the conclusion that the way rotating shifts were
> usually implemented in industry was almost the perfect way to guarantee
> maximum disruption of the circadian rhythms of the workers involved: i.e.,
> just about the time their bodies were adapting to one schedule, their shift
> would change again and they would have to start adapting all over
> again. The study said that accidents, both on-the-job and traffic
> accidents driving to and from work, were more common in rotating-shift
> workers than in fixed-shift workers (even those on the graveyard shift)
> because they were always tired, and it would be better from a safety
> standpoint to keep people on the same shift rather than rotating them.
>
> Assuming the results of both studies are correct, then, I suppose now one
> needs to consider whether the risk of cancer among night workers is greater
> than or less than the risk to the workers and others of the fatigue caused
> by rotating shifts . . .
One thing that can be done, and is in at least some instances, is to pay
the night workers more for the same work. Then you could recommend to
them to invest their extra to help defray costs of cancer treatment
later. :P
Julia
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