Projects per year
Personal profile
Biography
Career to Date
Dr Tracey Sletten completed her PhD at the University of South Australia examining the effects of shift work and fatigue in the field operations of aviation and rail. Her primary research incorporated large-scale investigations of the sleep/wake behaviour and occupational fatigue of several hundred commercial flight crew working long-haul flight patterns from Australia. Further to research, Dr Sletten held a consultative role, conducting training and education, analysing work shifts and conducting fatigue assessments for numerous transportation and emergency services operations within Australia and internationally.
Between 2005 and 2008 Dr Sletten held a post-doctoral position with the Centre for Chronobiology at the University of Surrey (United Kingdom) where some of the groundbreaking work in circadian photoreception has been conducted. She examined the effectiveness of different wavelengths of light to improve alertness and mood and shift the phase of human circadian rhythms. During this period Dr Sletten was also a Visiting Fellow in Chronobiology and Sleep Research at the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zurich, Switzerland. Dr Sletten has also held a Research Fellow position with the Division of Sleep Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston.
Dr Sletten was the former Chair of the European Sleep Research Society Forum for Women in Sleep Research and co-Chair of the Australasian Sleep Association Chronobiology Council.
Research Focus
Dr Sletten’s current research focus is in the role of sleep and the circadian system on waking function. Core topics include the impact of sleep loss and circadian misalignment on sleepiness and neurobehavioural performance, phenotyping and treatment of circadian rhythm sleep disorders, applications of lighting to enhance alertness, and the alertness and mental health outcomes associated with shiftwork. Dr Sletten has worked with numerous sectors employing shift workers including healthcare, heavy vehicle transport and international aviation. Dr Sletten has conducted large-scale field assessments of sleep, circadian phase, cognitive functioning and psychological health in expeditioners over-wintering in Antarctica.
Honours and Distinctions
2012 – Australasian Sleep Association Helen Bearpark Scholarship for Visiting Fellow position at Brigham & Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston.
Research area keywords
- Sleep
- Sleep loss
- Sleep deprivation
- Circadian rhythms
- Light
- Shift work
- Fatigue
- Sleep disorders
Network
Projects
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Understanding the role of light exposure in individual differences in the circadian response to shift work
Sletten, T., Wilson Rajaratnam, S., Lockley, S., Postnova, S., Howard, M. E. & Facer-Childs, E.
National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) (Australia)
1/01/21 → 31/12/23
Project: Research
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Improving mental health and wellbeing measurably in the Victorian manufacturing workforce
Stanley, D., Sletten, T., Wilson Rajaratnam, S. & Howard, M.
Victorian WorkCover Authority (VWA) (trading as WorkSafe Victoria) (Victoria), Monash University – Internal Department Contribution
1/04/20 → 31/03/22
Project: Research
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SWIFt Study: Shifting Weight using Intermittent Fasting (the SWIFt study): A novel weight loss intervention in overweight shift workers
Bonham, M., Banks, S., Huggins, C., Coates, A., Dorrian, J., Kellow, N. & Sletten, T.
1/01/19 → 31/12/23
Project: Research
-
Qantas Project Sunrise - extension
Sletten, T., Wilson Rajaratnam, S., Grunstein, R. R. & Howard, M. E.
Alertness, Safety and Productivity Cooperative Research Centre (CRC)
10/10/19 → 31/03/20
Project: Research
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Sleep Companion Consumer Entry Decision Tree and CRC Sleep Health Management Decision Support System – Phase 4
McEvoy, R. D., Sletten, T., Lovato, N., Vakulin, A., Catcheside, P., Wallace, A., Reynolds, K. J., Randhawa, S., Gardener-Stephen, P., Lakeman, J., Stevens, D., Lack, L., O'Grady, A., Chai-Coetzer, C. L., Grunstein, R. R., Gordon, C., Ramos, F., Jefferies, B., Wilson Rajaratnam, S., Hamilton, G. & Howard, M.
1/08/18 → 30/06/19
Project: Research
Research output
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A PERIOD3 variable number tandem repeat polymorphism modulates melatonin treatment response in delayed sleep-wake phase disorder
Magee, M., Sletten, T. L., Murray, J. M., Gordon, C. J., Lovato, N., Bartlett, D. J., Kennaway, D. J., Lockley, S. W., Lack, L. C., Grunstein, R. R., Archer, S. N. & Rajaratnam, S. M. W., 18 Jul 2020, (Accepted/In press) In : Journal of Pineal Research. 13 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
1 Citation (Scopus) -
A pre-drive ocular assessment predicts alertness and driving impairment: A naturalistic driving study in shift workers
Mulhall, M. D., Cori, J., Sletten, T. L., Kuo, J., Lenné, M. G., Magee, M., Spina, M-A., Collins, A., Anderson, C., Rajaratnam, S. M. W. & Howard, M. E., Feb 2020, In : Accident Analysis and Prevention. 135, 10 p., 105386.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
2 Citations (Scopus) -
Computational approaches for individual circadian phase prediction in field settings
Stone, J. E., Postnova, S., Sletten, T. L., Rajaratnam, S. M. W. & Phillips, A. J. K., Aug 2020, In : Current Opinion in Systems Biology. 22, p. 39-51 13 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review Article › Research › peer-review
1 Citation (Scopus) -
Exploring the associations between shift work disorder, depression, anxiety and sick leave taken amongst nurses
Booker, L. A., Sletten, T. L., Alvaro, P. K., Barnes, M., Collins, A., Chai-Coetzer, C. L., Naqvi, A., McMahon, M., Lockley, S. W., Rajaratnam, S. M. W. & Howard, M. E., Jun 2020, In : Journal of Sleep Research. 29, 3, 9 p., e12872.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
11 Citations (Scopus) -
Health consequences of circadian disruption
Sletten, T. L., Cappuccio, F. P., Davidson, A. J., Van Cauter, E., Rajaratnam, S. M. W. & Scheer, F. A. J. L., Jan 2020, In : Sleep. 43, 1, p. 1-3 3 p., zsz194.Research output: Contribution to journal › Letter › Other › peer-review
3 Citations (Scopus)