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. 2025 May 30:11:23779608251346678.
doi: 10.1177/23779608251346678. eCollection 2025 Jan-Dec.

Sleep Quality and Its Associated Factors among Adult Patients Admitted in the Intensive Care Units of Public Hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Taye Mezgebu Ashine  1 , Birehanu Melaku Kassaye  2 , Asefu Woldestadik  3 , Kasie Gebeyehu Tiruneh  4 , Tadesse Sahle Adeba  5 , Edmialem Getahun Mesfin  6 , Tamrat Alate Woldeyohannis  7 , Asaminew Habtamu Sane  8
Affiliations

Sleep Quality and Its Associated Factors among Adult Patients Admitted in the Intensive Care Units of Public Hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Taye Mezgebu Ashine et al. SAGE Open Nurs. .

Abstract

Background: Sleep is essential for physiologic function and mental health stability, which promotes recovery from severe illness. However, poor sleep quality is a common complaint in the critical care unit. In intensive care units (ICUs), physical aspects of patient care are often prioritized over humanized aspects of care.

Objective: To assess the level of sleep quality and its associated factors among adult patients admitted to critical care units in Addis Ababa.

Method: A cross-sectional study design was conducted in three selected public hospitals. Over 4 months of the period we consecutively collected data among ICU patients, who were oriented to time, person, and place on the day of discharge. A modified freedman self-reporting and personal characteristics questionnaire was used. The data were entered into Epi-data version 4.4.6.0 and analyzed with SPSS 25. Both bivariate and multivariate analyses were conducted. A P-value of <.05 indicated statistical significance, and an adjusted odds ratio with a 95% confidence range was used to show the strength of the association.

Result: Of the total 102 participants, 57.8% of ICU patients had poor sleep quality. Four variables were identified as significant associations with poor sleep quality among ICU patients. These included elderly age (adjusted odd ratio [AOR] = 3.4; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.42, 7.93), comorbidity (AOR = 2.5; 95% CI: 1.24, 9.03), light exposure (AOR = 2.0; 95% CI: 1.16, 5.11), and the monitor's alarm (AOR = 1.7; 95% CI: 1.04, 8.23) were identified as significant association factors for poor sleep quality.

Conclusion and recommendation: Poor sleep quality was a major concern for ICU patients in this study. Elderly individuals, those with comorbidity, light exposure, and monitor alarms have been associated with poor sleep quality. Reducing nighttime light and adjusting alarm settings may significantly improve sleep quality, resulting in better recovery results in critical care units.

Keywords: environmental exposure; intensive care units; risk factors; sleep deprivation; sleep disorder.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Schematic representation of ICU patients’ screening, enrollment, and participant in Freedman sleep quality questionnaire performed at the three ICUs in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 2020. ICU = intensive care unit.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Mean patient perceptions of sleep-disrupting factors in adult ICU patients at public hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 2020. 1 = None significant and 10 = Significant sleep-disrupting factors. ICU = intensive care unit.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Mean patient perceptions of noise sleep-disrupting factors in adult ICU patients of public hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 2020. Noise disruptions are rated on a scale of 1 (no disruption) to 10 (significant sleep disruption). ICU = intensive care unit.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Comparison of patients’ perceived sleep quality between home and intensive care unit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 2020.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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