Background: Sleep disorders are common in critically ill patients. Unfortunately, sleep assessment is challenging in many intensive care units (ICUs). The Richards-Campbell Sleep Questionnaire (RCSQ) is a simple subjective tool that has been validated and used in many countries. This study aimed to evaluate the reliability of the Korean version of the RCSQ (K-RCSQ).
Methods: This prospective, cross-sectional, observational study was conducted in the ICUs of two hospitals. In total, 52 consenting patients answered questionnaires regarding their previous night's sleep (K-RCSQ) and the noise they experienced (range, 0-100).
Results: The K-RCSQ showed excellent internal consistency of 0.960 by Cronbach's alpha. The mean total score of the K-RCSQ was 41.9±28.9 (range, 0-100). The mean perceived ICU noise score was 40.7±28.1 (range, 0-90). There was a significant linear correlation between noise score and average K-RCSQ score (r=-0.37, P<0.001).
Conclusions: The K-RCSQ demonstrated excellent reliability (internal consistency). This simple tool may help assess sleep quality in critically ill patients and improve the quality of ICU care.
Keywords: Richards-Campbell Sleep Questionnaire; reliability; sleep disorders.