Silent Hospitals Help Healing – SHHH Program

By Gabriela Duran-Lopez, Director of Patient Relations
e-mail: gabriela.lopez@hpmedcenter.com

Noise is inevitable in hospitals. There is overhead paging, doors banging, medical alarms sounding, squeaky carts, and conversations. Noise has been found to have detrimental effects on patients and staff. Studies have shown patients to have an increased pulse, disrupted sleep patterns, impaired wound healing and altered immune function. Among staff, increased noise levels are associated with perceived higher work demands, increased annoyance ratings and occupational stress and burnout.

Understanding the detrimental clinical effects of noise on our patients and ourselves motivates me to take action by turning down the volume. If we role model and remind each other to speak quietly in patient areas – similar to the behaviors we see in a spa “therapy” area or as seen in a library setting we will have better patient outcomes.

As a reminder to turn down the volume, a “SHHH Campaign” in the form of posters will soon appear in patient care areas. The poster will help publicize not only internally but also to our visitors, that we are aiming to reduce noise levels.

Each of us who have a presence in a patient care unit has to take personal accountability towards this common goal of noise reduction. Only with personal accountability, efforts such as this can be sustained.