Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 15, 2026

Multi-Modal Home Sleep Monitoring in Older Adults
Published on: January 26, 2019
[External barriers to good sleep from the nursing home residents' perspective]
Wolfram J Herrmann1, Uwe Flick
1Otto-von-Guericke-Universität Magdeburg, Institut für Allgemeinmedizin. wolfram.herrmann@med.ovgu.de
Background:
Nursing home residents often suffer from sleep disorders. For nurses, nursing home residents' sleep disorders are a complex problem. The nursing home residents' perspective on sleep and sleep disorders has been unknown yet. The Aim of this article is to describe external barriers to good sleep from the nursing home residents' perspective and to deduce implications for nursing practice.
Methods:
A qualitative interview study. 30 nursing home residents (at least 64 years old and oriented on place and person) from five different nursing homes in Berlin have been interviewed through episodic interviews. The data has been analyzed by use of thematic coding.
Results:
The sample consists of 20 women and 10 men, born between 1909 and 1944. From the nursing home residents' perspective, noise and light at night disturb their sleep. Noise and light can be caused by other residents or staff. The interviewed residents perceived disorientated room mates and room mates who needed frequently care at night as disturbing their night sleep. Additionally, the interviewed residents perceived the nurses' nightly rounds as disturbing.
Conclusions:
Nurses and residents should look together for possibilities of reducing nightly disturbances of sleep. Nursing home residents who need frequent nightly care should be living in rooms together with residents demanding a similar amount of nightly care. Nightly rounds should be minimized.
Related Concept Videos
Management of Insomnia
Insufficient Sleep and Sleep Deprivation
Sleep deprivation is a more severe form of sleep loss...
Insomnia
Multiple factors contribute...
Documentation in Long-Term and Home Healthcare Setting
Long-Term Care Facilities
Barriers to Effective Communication II
Cultural barriers:
Differences in values, beliefs, religion, knowledge, and tradition can significantly impact communication. Awareness of nonverbal cues is critical, especially when conversing with a patient from a different culture. What appears appropriate in one culture may be inappropriate in another.
Semantic barriers:
As a result of their tendency to use...
Nightmares and Night Terrors
Nightmares often...