Workplace sleep coaching to help firefighters sleep better

Assessing Clinical Effectiveness and Implementation of Worksite Sleep Health Coaching in Firefighters

NIH-funded research University of Arizona · NIH-11159514

This project offers brief CBT-I-based sleep coaching to career firefighters to help improve sleep and lower heart disease risk.

Quick facts

Grant typeR01 grant
Study typeNIH-funded research
Funding institutionUniversity of Arizona NIH-funded
Lab location1 site (Tucson, United States)
Project IDNIH-11159514 on NIH RePORTER

What this research studies

You would receive sleep health coaching based on cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) delivered at your fire station as part of a larger program. The project will roll out the coaching across 20 fire departments in a stepped-wedge design and enroll about 400 career firefighters. Sleep outcomes will be tracked with a standard questionnaire (PROMIS Sleep Disturbances) and an actigraphy-based sleep health index from a wearable device. The team will also study what helps or gets in the way of using the coaching program in real-world firehouse settings.

Who could benefit from this research

Good fit: Ideal participants are career firefighters at one of the participating departments who report sleep problems and are willing to attend workplace coaching sessions and wear an activity monitor.

Not a fit: Firefighters without sleep disturbances, those not employed at a participating department, or those unwilling to take part in coaching or wear monitoring devices may not benefit from this project.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, this could produce a practical, scalable program that improves firefighter sleep and may reduce on-duty cardiac risk.

How similar studies have performed: CBT-I is proven effective in clinical settings, but delivering CBT-I–informed coaching at worksites for firefighters is largely untested.

Where this research is happening

Tucson, United States

Researchers

About this research

  1. This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
  2. Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
  3. For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.
Last reviewed 2026-06-15 by the Find a Trial editorial team. Information on this page is for educational purposes and is not medical advice. Always consult qualified healthcare professionals about clinical trial participation.