Noise control strategies for modern hospitals

In hospitals, controlling noise levels is essential for patient well-being. Explore the various ways that modern hospitals can achieve it in this feature

- 

Alpana Gupta,
Partner, Vijay Gupta
Architects

When it comes to hospital design and planning, one crucial aspect that often goes unnoticed is acoustics management. As a result, hospitals, although regarded as silent zones, are susceptible to both, external and internal noise.

Noise pollution in hospitals is a global. phenomenon. It is a common grievance among patients, families, and staff world over. In the US, "quietness of hospital environment" is among the lowest scoring items on patient surveys. In the UK, 40 percent of hospital patients are bothered by noise at night, a consistent finding of the NHS Inpatient Survey. Hospital noise is a steadily worsening problem, with levels regularly exceeding international recommendations. Noise levels over 100 dB have been measured in intensive care units, the equivalent of loud music through headphones and the point beyond which damage to hair cells in the ear can occur.

Patients come to hospital for recovery and one of the important factors that expedite recovery is unbroken sleep and relaxation. In fact, a noisy hospital environment can prove to be the opposite-detrimental to rapid recovery of patients. A study by ResearchGate states that noise monitoring and control are important for quality management in healthcare facilities, in order to achieve the greatest possible content among patients and employees.

Addressing the issue