Photo: Andre Holdrinet

Give emergency room doctors a nap, and not only will they do a better job, they’ll also be nicer to you, according to a new study from Stanford University School of Medicine.

The findings, to be published in the November issue of Annals of Emergency Medicine, showed improved mood, a higher alertness level and the ability to complete a simulated I.V. insertion more quickly among doctors and nurses who were allowed a short nap while working the night shift in an emergency room.

“Napping is a very powerful, very inexpensive way of improving our work,” said one of the study’s authors, Steven Howard, MD, associate professor of anesthesia and expert on sleep deprivation and fatigue.

According to statistics on America’s need for sleep, plenty of people could use a nap. More than 50 percent of Americans are sleep-deprived.

Coming from a lifetime of sleep apnea, I can sympathize with the subjects and the study. Although I have to admit that while using CPAP therapy to sleep has made me healthier — it hasn’t reduced my crankometer index!