Berwick Shift Workers Combat Sleep Disruption With New Local Programs

More than 40 percent of Berwick residents on rotating rosters at the Berwick Hospital report sleeping fewer than five hours on workdays, according to internal staff surveys released in June.

The issue has grown because overnight and early-morning shifts at the hospital and nearby distribution centres have increased since the start of 2025, leaving workers without consistent dark hours for recovery.

Staff at Berwick Hospital on Gloucester Avenue can now join a free six-week sleep clinic run by the Berwick Community Wellness Hub on High Street, which began accepting enrolments on 1 July. The same hub also partners with the 24-hour service station on Clyde Road to hand out blackout eye masks and earplugs during shift-change times.

A 2024 national sleep survey found shift workers lose an average of 1.5 hours of sleep per night compared with day workers, with costs for untreated insomnia reaching $1,200 per person in lost productivity each year.

Light and meal timing

Workers on Clyde Road night shifts are advised to wear blue-light blocking glasses for the final two hours of their shift and to eat their largest meal before 2am rather than after finishing work. The wellness hub supplies cheap timers that turn off bedroom lights at set morning hours for those living near Princes Highway.

Local support options

Residents can book a $25 initial assessment at the Berwick Medical Centre on Gloucester Avenue, where nurses review individual rosters and suggest short naps of 20 minutes between shifts. Follow-up calls from the centre are scheduled for two weeks later to check whether the changes have improved sleep duration.

Anyone starting a new roster pattern should contact the hub this week to secure one of the remaining 30 places in the July clinic before numbers close on 15 July.