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This morning I joined Tony McManus on Australia Overnight for a conversation that went somewhere I think we need to go more often.

What is shift work like for the people waiting at home?

The conversation started with a powerful email from the wife of a retired police officer who had worked shifts for more than 42.5 years. She spoke about lying awake waiting to hear his car pull into the driveway, the impact his shifts had on their daughter, and how some of those effects have remained even after his retirement.

It really struck a chord with me.

For more than 40 years, I was the shift worker. But my family lived that roster too.

Tony and I talked about the impact shift work can have on partners and children, the anxiety of waiting for someone to get home safely, and the way working nights can disconnect you from normal family life.

We also heard from listeners across nursing, ambulance, policing and transport who shared their own experiences.

And that led us into a much bigger discussion.

We train people extensively to do their jobs. We teach them the equipment, policies, procedures and safety requirements.

Then we hand them a roster requiring them to work against their biology, often without properly teaching them how to manage it.

How to sleep. How to manage light. When to eat. How to move. How to manage fatigue. And how to build some sort of normal life around an abnormal working schedule.

After more than 40 years of frontline shift work, this is the gap I am now trying to change.

This was a great conversation about shift work, fatigue, family life and why we need to do much more to support the people who keep Australia running around the clock.

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Roger Sutherland is Australia's Night Shift & Sleep Specialist and the founder of A Healthy Shift.

After more than 40 years working rotating shifts with Victoria Police, Roger now helps organisations reduce fatigue risk, improve staff wellbeing and build healthier, safer and higher-performing 24/7 workplaces through evidence-based education, circadian biology and the Shift Work Champions™ Framework.

Shift Work Champions™: https://join.ahealthyshift.com/shift-work-capability

Website: https://ahealthyshift.com.au

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/roger-sutherland

Instagram: @a_healthy_shift

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Disclaimer: Roger Sutherland is not a doctor or a medical professional. Always consult a physician before implementing any strategies mentioned in this podcast. Use of this information is strictly at your own risk. Roger Sutherland will not assume any liability for direct or indirect losses or damages that may result from the use of the information contained in this podcast, including but not limited to economic loss, injury, illness, or death.

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