Impact of work schedules of senior resident physicians on patient and resident physician safety: nationwide, prospective cohort study.

These results indicate that exceeding 48 weekly work hours or working shifts of extended duration endangers even experienced (ie, PGY2+) resident physicians and their patients. These data suggest that regulatory bodies in the US and elsewhere should consider lowering weekly work hour limits, as the European Union has done, and eliminating shifts of extended duration to protect the more than 150 000 physicians training in the US and their patients.