Sleep hygiene in nursing students at a University in Guayaquil, Ecuador

Introduction: Sleep hygiene is a set of guidelines to have an optimal quality and quantity of sleep and is associated with different factors. Objective: To analyze the sleep hygiene of 8th and 9th semester nursing students from a university in Guayaquil, Ecuador. Methodology: A cross-sectional, descriptive, exploratory study was conducted to analyze sleep hygiene in nursing students, based on data obtained in the period 2022-2023. Population: 320 nursing students. Technique: Survey. Instrument: Sleep Hygiene Index. Results: The research shows that 53% are female, aged between 20 and 25 years (47%), urban residence (79%), single (58%), work alternate shifts (morning-night) (51%). According to the categories involved in sleep hygiene, students sleep less than 8 hours a day (61%) and as a factor that triggers nighttime awakening is emotional (44%). In addition, in the application of the index, 28% wake up at different times of the day, 24% perform a previous activity that keeps them awake, and 31% go to bed feeling annoyed or stressed. With respect to the types of sleep disorders, insomnia was found to be the main sleep disturbance (31%). Conclusion: A high score was obtained from the survey, indicating poor sleep hygiene as a result of poor quality of rest.