Auditory and non-auditory effects of noise on health

Noise is pervasive in everyday life and can cause both auditory and non-auditory health eff ects. Noise-induced hearing loss remains highly prevalent in occupational settings, and is increasingly caused by social noise exposure (eg, through personal music players). Our understanding of molecular mechanisms involved in noise-induced haircell and nerve damage has substantially increased, and preventive and therapeutic drugs will probably become available within 10 years. Evidence of the non-auditory eff ects of environmental noise exposure on public health is growing. Observational and experimental studies have shown that noise exposure leads to annoyance, disturbs sleep and causes daytime sleepiness, aff ects patient outcomes and staff performance in hospitals, increases the occurrence of hypertension and cardiovascular disease, and impairs cognitive performance in schoolchildren. In this Review, we stress the importance of adequate noise prevention and mitigation strategies for public health.

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Auditory and non-auditory eff ects of noise on health

Alarm fatigue is a national problem and the number one medical device technology hazard in 2012. The problem of alarm desensitization is multifaceted and related to a high false alarm rate, poor positive predictive value, lack of alarm standardization, and the number of alarming medical devices in hospitals today. This integrative review synthesizes research and non-research findings published between 1/1/2000 and 10/1/2011 using The Johns Hopkins Nursing Evidence-Based Practice model. Seventy-two articles were included. Research evidence was organized into five main themes: excessive alarms and effects on staff; nurse's response to alarms; alarm sounds and audibility; technology to reduce false alarms; and alarm notification systems. Non-research evidence was divided into two main themes: strategies to reduce alarm desensitization, and alarm priority and notification systems. Evidence-based practice recommendations and gaps in research are summarized.

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Monitor alarm fatigue: an integrative review.

There is increasing concern about the effects of pile driving and other anthropogenic (human-generated) sound on fishes. Although there is a growing body of reports examining this issue, little of the work is found in the peer-reviewed literature. This review critically examines both the peer-reviewed and 'grey' literature, with the goal of determining what is known and not known about effects on fish. A companion piece provides an analysis of the available data and applies it to estimate noise exposure criteria for pile driving and other impulsive sounds. The critical literature review concludes that very little is known about effects of pile driving and other anthropogenic sounds on fishes, and that it is not yet possible to extrapolate from one experiment to other signal parameters of the same sound, to other types of sounds, to other effects, or to other species.

The effects of anthropogenic sources of sound on fishes.

Introduction Human Factors and Ergonomics in Health Care and Patient Safety Human Factors and Patient Safety: Continuing Challenges Macroergonomics and Systems A Historical Perspective and Overview of Macroergonomics Work System Design in Health Care Sociotechnical System Design in Health Care Clinical Microsystems in Health Care: The Role of Human Factors in Shaping the Microsystem The Artichoke Systems Approach for Identifying the Why of Error Organizational Learning in Health Care The Relationship Between Physician Professionalism and Health Care Systems Change Collaborative Initiatives for Patient Safety Job and Organizational Design Job Stress in Health Care Workers Effect of Workplace Stress on Patient Outcomes Safety Culture in Health Care Burnout in Health Care Human Factors of Transition of Care Reliability Enhancement and Demise at Back Bay Medical Center's Children's Hospital The Relation Between Teamwork and Patient Safety Physical Ergonomics Human Factors in Hospital Safety Design Physical Environment in Health Care Physical Ergonomics in Health Care Evidence-Based Interventions for Patient Care Ergonomics Ergonomics: Noise and Alarms in Health Care An Ergonomic Dilemma Technology Human Factors Engineering and the Design of Medical Devices Patient Safety and Technology: A Two-Edged Sword New Technology Implementation in Health Care Robotics in Health Care: HF Issues in Surgery Human Computer Interaction in Health Care Re-Presenting Reality: The Human Factors of Health Care Information Human Error Behind Human Error: Taming Complexity to Improve Patient Safety Human Error Reduction Strategies in Health Care Medical Failure Taxonomies Human Factors of Health Care Reporting Systems Communicating About Unexpected Outcomes and Errors Human Factors and Ergonomics Methodologies Cognitive Work Analysis in Health Care Human Factors Risk Management in Medical Products Work Systems and Process Analysis in Health Care Video Analysis in Health Care Usability Evaluation in Health Care Assessing Safety Culture and Climate in Health Care Incident Analysis in Health Care Human Factors and Ergonomics Interventions Ergonomics Programs and Effective Interventions Quality Improvement in Health Care Work Organization Interventions in Health Care Teamwork Training for Patient Safety: Best Practices and Guiding Principles Tilting the Culture in Health Care: Using Cultural Strengths to Transform Organizations Specific Applications Human Factors and Ergonomics in Intensive Care A Process-Oriented Approach Human Factors and Ergonomics in the Emergency Department Human Factors and Ergonomics in Pediatrics Human Factors and Ergonomics in Home Care Human Factors and Ergonomics in Nursing Home Care Human Factors and Ergonomics in Primary Care

Handbook of Human Factors and Ergonomics in Health Care and Patient Safety (Human Factors and Ergonomics Series) (Human Factors and Ergonomics Series)

Nurses do not always have visual access to their patients in hospital corridors. During these times, lack of proper monitoring of auditory cues can potentially delay nurse response time and disable early detection of complications. Particular acoustic characteristics of hospital sound environments such as reverberation time can be highly detrimental to nurses’ sound-based task performance. In previous studies, the effects of surface materials on temporal characteristics of reverberant corridor sound environments have been studied. However, little is known about the relationship between floor-plate shapes and temporal characteristics of reverberant corridor sound environments. The main goal of this study was to statistically examine the relationship between floor-plate shape and temporal characteristics of reverberant sound environments in inter-connected nursing unit corridors by conducting floor-plate shape analysis, acoustic simulation studies and field measurements. Overall, the findings suggest the po...

Linking acoustics and floor-plate shape qualities of healthcare settings

Buildings that are subjected to aviation noise require extra sound isolation measures in order to keep the indoor noise levels below a certain threshold. The difference in sound pressure from outside to inside a building is often quantified as a single number known as the noise level reduction (NLR). Generally, the procedures described in ASTM E966-10 are followed in determining this number for a facade, which is then used to determine the modifications required. The standard allows testing with one of two noise sources: an actual traffic source or a loudspeaker. An investigation is underway to statistically evaluate the repeatability and reproducibility of measurements taken on a facade for a “test house” with a loud speaker. The test house is a single-room structure that was designed and constructed with materials and methods of a residence in a mixed-humid climate. The repeatability is defined as the ability for a specific test to be implemented multiple times with comparable results, while the reproducibility is the ability for various test configurations allowed within the standard to yield comparable results. The results of this analysis can be used to improve testing parameters, further validate the procedure, and provide an estimate of confidence bounds.

Reproducibility and repeatability of measuring noise level reduction using an artificial noise source

Noise invades all aspects of our lives. The word noise is actually derived from the Latin word “nausea,” with one possible connection being that unpleasant sounds were made by seasick passengers or sailors in ancient times. In modern times, the demand for noise research and consulting has intensified in concert with rising population densities, growing industrialized societies, escalating demands from consumers, and increasingly common standards and legislation related to noise. The Acoustical Society of America Technical Committee on Noise (TC Noise) is concerned with all aspects of noise, ranging from noise generation and propagation, to active and passive methods of controlling noise, to the effects of noise on humans and animals. This talk will explore the broad topic of noise and its impact on our world.

Noise and its impact on our world

Evaluating and improving hospital soundscapes

Many researchers have attempted to characterize the soundscape of hospital wards using traditional acoustic metrics. These traditional metrics, such as average sound level, are readily measured using sound level meters and have been the primary results reported in previous studies. However, it has been shown that these traditional metrics may be insufficient in fully characterizing the wards. This is a continuation of a larger study that evaluates the relationship between hospital soundscape and the effects on the hospital occupants in a medical‐surgical intensive care unit. The previous study in this series showed statistically significant relationships between patient physiology and the traditional sound level meter metrics. This current study aims to expand beyond traditional sound level meters and use digital recordings to describe the ICU rooms with psychoacoustics metrics. Thus, a comprehensive catalog of these metrics for ICUs is compiled and presented. In addition to descriptive results with these...

Erica E. Ryherd

Papers

Linking acoustics and floor-plate shape qualities of healthcare settings

Reproducibility and repeatability of measuring noise level reduction using an artificial noise source

Noise and its impact on our world

Evaluating and improving hospital soundscapes

Psychoacoustic measures and their relationship to patient physiology in an intensive care unit.