She directs the Pediatric Sleep Disorders Clinic at Hasbro Children's Hospital in Providence. Owens and colleagues are now testing a five-question sleep screening survey designed to help a pediatrician uncover 95 percent of a child's sleep difficulties. Information from such a survey may help parents who don' t know how much sleep a child needs or cannot define a sleep problem. Other parents may need a wake-up call that a child needs more rest and regulation. Information from teachers is not usually gathered in sleep studies of children, but Owens and colleagues say teachers must be queried.
Educators see the daily impact of sleep problems on children.
Teachers routinely observe children in a different environment and under a different level of stimulation than parents. Teachers in the study said that at least 10 percent of students struggled to stay awake. Compared to parents, teachers also noted higher levels of daytime sleepiness in younger versus older children. This is an age range that is normally physiologically alert during the day. Our job is to inform teachers of the host of daytime sleepiness cues.