A team of researchers from the sleep study group of the Faculty of Medicine of the Catholic University of the North – made up of professors from the Departments of Clinics and Public Health – has published an important study in the April-June edition of the Chilean Journal of Neuro-Psychiatry.
The research team is made up of former students of the UCN Medicine Program: José Luis Ibáñez Arredondo, Catalina Valladares Silva, Vanessa Flores Cenzano, and Patricio Torres Rojas, who developed the work while they were still students. It is also made up of professors Marcela Cortés Sepúlveda, from the Department of Public Health, and Fernando Molt Cancino, from the Department of Clinics.
“Multidisciplinary collaborative work in a Faculty of Medicine has a positive impact on the areas of education, research and disciplinary work. Likewise, work between departments offers students a more comprehensive education, facilitating the development of transversal skills, such as teamwork, which is crucial in future professional practice. The interaction between different disciplines can lead to the generation of innovative ideas and approaches, or to finding solutions to more complex problems. For example, current health problems dominated by chronic diseases require a multidisciplinary approach for their treatment and where collaboration allows, precisely, to address them from different fronts, increasing the possibility of finding effective solutions,” said the director of the Department of Public Health, Domingo Lancellotti Giganti.
“The UCN School of Medicine promotes a collaborative research model that transcends disciplinary boundaries. By bringing together academics, students and the community, we co-create relevant and transformative knowledge to address the most urgent challenges in public health. Through collaborative research projects, we seek to generate solid evidence that allows us to design effective interventions and improve people’s quality of life. Collaboration is the key to building a healthier future for all,” explained academic Marcela Cortés Sepúlveda.
RESULTS
This research focuses on sleep disturbances experienced by the population of the Coquimbo region during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and the lockdown implemented to combat its spread.
The study, which assessed sleep quality and daytime sleepiness, was conducted by applying a validated survey to a sample of 1,074 participants.
Data were collected through an online questionnaire that included the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESEp), both self-administered instruments validated in Spanish. The analysis was carried out using the SPSS-26 program, and the study was approved by the Ethics Committee.
The results revealed that 80.1% of the participants presented alterations in sleep quality according to the PSQI, and 50.2% experienced some degree of daytime sleepiness according to the ESEp. In addition, it was observed that women showed a poorer quality of sleep and greater daytime sleepiness compared to men, with statistically significant differences.
The research concludes that sleep is a vital function for living beings and that its alterations can have important consequences for health. This is especially worrying in a health system already overburdened by the pandemic. Therefore, it is crucial to promote measures such as good sleep hygiene to improve the quality of life of the population.
CONTRIBUTION
This milestone of studies between different levels and departments of the UCN School of Medicine is undoubtedly a guide for future publications. It also represents a significant milestone for the now former students, who plan new contributions for their careers and medical work.
The findings will thus become a contribution to knowledge about the effects of the pandemic on sleep health and even an impetus for the implementation of policies and practices that benefit our community.
