A Healthy Shift | The Shift Work Podcast
It doesn't have to be this way.
Welcome to A Healthy Shift | The Shift Work Podcast, the podcast helping shift workers thrive while changing how organisations think about people working in 24/7 environments.
Hosted by Roger Sutherland, Australia's Night Shift & Sleep Specialist, this is where evidence meets lived experience.
After more than 40 years of working rotating shifts with Victoria Police, followed by years studying nutrition, circadian biology, chrononutrition, sleep, human performance and women's health, Roger is on a mission to challenge the belief that fatigue, poor sleep, burnout and declining health are simply part of working shifts.
Because they don't have to be.
Whether you're a nurse, paramedic, police officer, firefighter, doctor, aged care worker, manufacturing employee, FIFO worker, miner, pilot, flight attendant, truck driver, dispatcher, or anyone working outside the traditional 9-to-5, this podcast will give you practical, evidence-based strategies to help you sleep better, improve your energy, optimise your health and perform at your best.
If you're a leader, manager, People & Culture professional, WHS specialist, or responsible for leading a 24/7 workforce, you'll discover a different way of thinking about shift work—one that focuses on building shift work capability from within through education, leadership and practical systems that create healthier people, stronger teams and higher-performing organisations.
Each episode explores topics including:
• Shift work
• Night shift
• Sleep after night shift
• Circadian rhythm
• Fatigue management
• Shift worker health
• Nutrition for shift workers
• Chrononutrition
• Recovery and resilience
• Women's health and shift work
• Leadership in 24/7 organisations
• Human performance
• Workplace wellbeing
• Fatigue risk management
• Building healthier, safer and higher-performing workplaces
This isn't another podcast offering generic health tips.
It's a podcast about changing the future of shift work.
Because healthier people create stronger teams.
Stronger teams build better organisations.
And it all starts by understanding how to work with biology, not against it.
It doesn't have to be this way.
Episodes
423 episodes
[426] – Dead Tired, But Wide Awake? Why Shift Workers Can't Switch Off
You've just finished a long, demanding shift. You're absolutely exhausted, all you want to do is get home and sleep, but the moment your head hits the pillow, your mind decides it's time to wake up.Sound familiar?In this episode o...
[425] – You're There for Everyone Else, But Who's Looking After You?
You spend your working hours looking after other people, then come home to family, household responsibilities and everything else life throws at you. But somewhere along the way, when did you stop making time for yourself?In this episode...
[424] – The Hidden Freedom of Shift Work | Why Monday to Friday Isn't for Everyone
Who decided that Saturday and Sunday had to be the best days of the week?After more than 40 years of shift work, one of the things I genuinely loved was the freedom of having time off when everyone else was working.In this episode...
[423]- Your host on Radio 3AW - Talk Back Radio 26-10-2026
In this morning's chat with Tony McManus on 3AW Australia Overnight, we took a lighter look at shift work and some of the benefits that often get overlooked.From quieter roads and fewer bosses to the friendships and funny moments that ma...
[422] – The People Who Made Shift Work Worth It, You Know Who They Are
After more than 40 years of working shifts, some of my greatest memories aren't about the work itself. They're about the people I worked alongside.In this episode of A Healthy Shift, I'm continuing our positive look at shift work ...
[421] - The Funny Side of Shift Work: Things Only Shift Workers Understand
The Funny Side of Shift Work: Things Only Shift Workers UnderstandIf you've ever woken up and had absolutely no idea what day it is, eaten breakfast at three in the afternoon or tried explaining to someone why being home during ...
[420] - Why I Loved Shift Work After 40 Years | The Benefits Nobody Talks About
Why I Loved Shift Work After 40 Years | The Benefits Nobody Talks AboutShift work gets plenty of negative attention. Poor sleep, fatigue, disrupted routines and the challenges of working outside normal hours. But after more than...
[419] - Part 5 - What Does a Shift Work Capable Organisation Actually Look Like?
Across the last few episodes, I’ve talked about what I believe is missing in the way many organisations support their shift-working workforce. In this episode, I want to turn that conversation around and look at what we could actually build ...
[418] - Part 4 - What Happens After the Shift Work Seminar?
Bringing someone into your organisation to educate your shift-working workforce can be incredibly valuable. I’ve seen firsthand what happens when people finally understand why they’re struggling with sleep, fatigue, light exposure, caffeine,...
[417] - Part 3 - Who Actually Owns Shift Worker Health in Your Organisation?
Who actually owns shift worker health inside a 24/7 organisation?Is it Health and Wellbeing? Safety? HR or People and Culture? Operations? Leadership? Or does responsibility ultimately sit with the individual shift worker?<...
[416] - Part 2 - You Gave Them a Roster, But Did You Teach Them How to Work It?
We’re very good at teaching people how to do their job. But are we teaching them how to manage their life around when we’re asking them to do that job?In this episode, I explore what I believe is one of t...
[415]- Your host on Radio 3AW - Talk Back Radio 28-09-2026
This morning I joined Tony McManus on Australia Overnight for a conversation that went somewhere I think we need to go more often.What is shift work like for the people waiting at home?The conversation started with a powerful emai...
[414] - Part 1 - The Hidden Cost of NOT Educating Your Shift Workers?
What does it cost an organisation to educate its shift-working workforce?That's an easy number to see. It appears on a proposal, gets allocated to a budget and requires someone to approve it.But there's another nu...
[413] - Can You Actually Adapt to Night Shift?
Can You Actually Adapt to Night Shift?“I’ve been doing night shift for years. My body is used to it.”But does feeling comfortable working nights mean your biology has actually adapted?In this episode, I explore the i...
[412] - The First Day Off After Night Shift — What Should You Actually Do
The First Day Off After Night Shift — What Should You Actually Do?You’ve finished your final night shift and now you need to transition back to days. So, what’s the best way to approach that first day off?In this episode, I...
[411] - Nobody Taught You How to Work Shifts — And Thats the Problem
Nobody Taught You How to Work Shifts — And That’s the ProblemShift workers are trained to do their jobs, but how many are actually taught how to work shifts?In this episode, I explore one of the biggest gaps in 24/7 ...
[410] - Eating Jet Lag: What Changing Meal Times Could Be Doing to Your Health
Night shift doesn’t only disrupt when you sleep. It can completely change when you eat.One day you’re eating dinner at six in the evening. The next, you’re having a main meal at two in the morning, eating breakfast after work and then tr...
[409] - Is Night Shift Bad for Your Health?
Is night shift bad for your health?The research linking night shift work with circadian disruption, poor sleep, metabolic dysfunction and increased long-term health risks gives us good reason to take the question seriously.But the...
[408] - You Don't Have to Feel Stressed to Be Stressed
What if some of the biggest stressors in your life don’t actually feel like stress?For shift workers, stress isn’t only a difficult boss, a busy shift, financial pressure or feeling overwhelmed. Your body can be dealing with physiologica...
[407] - Stop Replacing Shift Workers. Start Asking Why They're Leaving.
Stop Replacing Shift Workers. Start Asking Why They're Leaving.If your organisation is constantly recruiting shift workers to replace the people who are leaving, there may be another question worth asking:Why are they leavi...
[406]- Your host on Radio 3AW (w/special guest Antony - Runway Pickleball) - Talk Back Radio 31-08-2026
I join Tony McManus on 3AW’s Australia Overnight for a lively conversation about the “pub test,” government spending, Victoria’s debt and the pressure facing police, nurses, paramedics and teachers.We also bring the conversation back to ...
[405] - What If Your Shift Work Expert Was Already on Shift?
What If Your Shift Work Expert Was Already on Shift?Who does a shift worker turn to at 2am when they're exhausted, struggling with night shift and wondering how much longer they can keep doing it?Usually, it's the person wo...
[404] - Your Shift Workers Don't Need More Motivation. They Need Understanding.
Your Shift Workers Don't Need More Motivation. They Need Understanding.Are your shift workers really unmotivated, or have they simply never been taught how to work shifts properly?Many 24/7 organisations invest in employee ...
[403] - Why One-Off Shift Work Training Isn't Enough for 24/7 Workforces
Why One-Off Shift Work Training Isn't Enough for 24/7 WorkforcesWhat happens after your workplace shift work training ends?A seminar can create awareness. It can give shift workers those important lightbulb moments where th...
[402] - Creatine for Night Shift Workers: Could It Help When You’re Sleep Deprived?
Creatine for Night Shift Workers: Could It Help When You’re Sleep Deprived?Could creatine monohydrate help night-shift workers maintain cognitive performance when they’re tired and sleep-deprived?Creatine is be...