Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, PGIMER, Chandigarh, India.
Department of Community Medicine, Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi, India.
Arch Environ Occup Health. 2023;78(9-10):471-482. doi: 10.1080/19338244.2023.2286388. Epub 2024 Feb 7.
Hospital noise has remained a low priority problem in India. An area of not less than 100 meters around a hospital is considered a silence zone, with guidelines restricting noise levels at 50dBA during daytime and 40dBA during the night. World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines also stipulate an average of 30dBA and a maximum of 40dbA. Annoyance is a known effect of noise exposure. However, very few studies have attempted to explore the hospital soundscape and the annoyance among staff related to it. Noise data was collected from 30 sites, using a Digital Integrating Sound Level Meter, LutronSL-4035SD (ISO-9001,CE,IEC1010) meeting IEC61672 standards. Stratified random sampling of staff was done on basis of noise exposure. A pre-designed, semi-structured questionnaire collected information on sociodemographic and work profile. Annoyance was defined as a stress reaction to environmental noise and was measured using standardized general purpose noise reaction questionnaire (ISO-TS/15666). Data was analyzed in SPSS. The mean L 24 h across all the sites was 69.5dBA (SD ±5.8dBA) for the weekdays and 66.2dBA (SD ±4.6dBA) for the weekends. Noise levels were higher during the day than during the night, and higher during the weekdays as compared to the weekends. 332(73.8%) study participants were found to be annoyed due to hospital noise. Annoyance among study participants was significantly associated with L 24 h > 80 dBA during the weekdays [aOR = 5.08 (1.17-22.06)] and L 24 h of 65-80 dBA during the weekends [aOR = 2.71 (1.46-5.01)]. Noise levels in the hospital far exceeded WHO and Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) guidelines recommended for indoor hospital noise, as well as the national guidelines for sensitive zones. Almost three-fourth of the study participants were annoyed due to hospital noise. Significant association was found between annoyance among staff and higher noise levels of their workplace. Similar studies need to be conducted in hospitals across India to generate evidence on the current situtation and identify solutions.
医院噪音在印度一直是一个低优先级的问题。医院周围不少于 100 米的区域被视为静音区，指南限制白天噪声水平为 50dBA，夜间噪声水平为 40dBA。世界卫生组织（WHO）的指南还规定平均噪声水平为 30dBA，最大噪声水平为 40dB。噪声暴露会引起烦恼，这是已知的。然而，很少有研究试图探索医院的声音环境以及与员工相关的烦恼。使用 LutronSL-4035SD（ISO-9001、CE、IEC1010）数字积分声级计从 30 个地点收集噪声数据，符合 IEC61672 标准。根据噪声暴露情况对员工进行分层随机抽样。使用预先设计的半结构化问卷收集社会人口统计学和工作概况信息。烦恼被定义为对环境噪声的应激反应，并使用标准化通用噪声反应问卷（ISO-TS/15666）进行测量。数据在 SPSS 中进行分析。所有地点的 24 小时平均 L 24 为工作日的 69.5dBA（标准差±5.8dBA），周末的 66.2dBA（标准差±4.6dBA）。白天的噪声水平高于夜间，工作日的噪声水平高于周末。由于医院噪音，332（73.8%）名研究参与者感到烦恼。研究参与者的烦恼与工作日 L 24 小时＞80 dBA（aOR=5.08（1.17-22.06））和周末 L 24 小时 65-80 dBA（aOR=2.71（1.46-5.01））显著相关。医院的噪声水平远远超过了 WHO 和中央污染控制委员会（CPCB）推荐的室内医院噪声标准，以及国家敏感区域的噪声标准。由于医院噪音，近四分之三的研究参与者感到烦恼。工作人员的烦恼与工作场所的较高噪声水平之间存在显著关联。需要在印度各地的医院进行类似的研究，以提供有关当前情况的证据并确定解决方案。
