Improving Patient Satisfaction through Noise Reduction Activities - Essay Example

Executive Summary: Improving Patient Satisfaction through Noise Reduction Activities Noise reduction strategies provide a powerful means for achieving higher patient satisfaction levels, and promoting faster healing and recovery among patients. Studies indicate that high noise levels in the healthcare environment negatively affect the psychological, physiologic and overall health of patents. It increases stress levels, heart rate and risk of cardiac problems, disrupts sleep, produces confusion, affects cognitive function, alters hormone levels, and reduces the confidence of patients on their caregivers (Call, 2007).

Shelton (2000) also points out that environmental noise and its possible effects on healing and the rate of recovery of hospitalized patients is a special concern to nurses. At the same time, it has been found that healthcare givers functioning in a noisy environment are vulnerable to irritability, depression, exhaustion and burnout. The purpose of the program or project Improvement of Patient Satisfaction through Noise Reduction Activities is a quality improvement initiative. The purpose of this project is to enhance patient-satisfaction scores by 20% within a period of six months.

To achieve this, the project aims at evaluating the impacts of the most common sources of excessive noise within the hospital environment and developing a long-term solution to the problem. The major sources of excessive noise that have been identified in the hospital environment include nursing activities during the day, evening and night and, talking and laughing by visitors, employees, other patients and occasionally, construction. Patients have also recorded that disturbance came from noisy doors, other patients, staff, double rooms, roommates, equipment and technology, hallways, and general hospital noise.

Highest noise levels are recorded during shift changes and the noisiest area is the nurses’ station (Shelton, 2000). The target population or audience The project targets patients and nurses. Patients form the main target group considering that the project will directly affect the environment that they live in during their hospitalization period. For this population, the research will target two 30-bed units and two semi-private rooms. A patient-satisfaction questionnaire will be developed and through this, the patients are expected to express their true responses and feelings to high noise levels.

Nurses form the second target group because high noise levels have also been found to affect them negatively. They are also a major source of noise in patient wards. At the same time, intervention measures will mainly revolve around this workforce in terms of station design, personal conduct and management of the hospital wards. The benefits of the program or project This project will ensure and provide evidence-based practice for improving patient satisfaction and, enhance the healing and recovery of patients.

It will lead to the identification and implementation of effective noise reduction strategies in the hospital. The resultant interventions will promote patient relaxation and this in turn will directly and positively impact on their psychological, physiological and overall health. It will also help to enhance patient perception of their well being and promote physiological and psychological measures for patient recovery. In addition, the project will help to improve the workplace condition for nurses and this will reduce their vulnerability to irritability, depression, exhaustion and burnout.

This in turn will increase their ability to deliver quality healthcare to the patients which will directly impact on patient satisfaction. The cost or budget justification The project will cost $20,000. This money will be used for facilitating a series of nursing education sessions on the effects of noise on the health of patients and how to reduce them. It will be used to buy and install decibel readers for monitoring noise levels at various points in the hospital like patient rooms, nurse workstation, hallway and outside the wards.

Sound meters showing different colors of light for various levels of noise will also be bought and installed in the nurse workstation and patient wards to increase awareness on noise levels among nurses and patients. This will cost $1,200. The remaining $18,200 will be used in implementing some of the possible noise reduction strategies like installing soft door closers, insulating nursing stations with sound proof materials, glassing of nurse stations, lining of hallways with noise a reducing material like rubber carpets and, acquiring headsets and sleep masks for patients.

Costly interventions like acquisition of better materials and technology will be incorporated into the hospital’s annual budget. The basis upon which the program or project will be evaluated The project will be evaluated on the basis of the patient-satisfaction scores regarding levels of noise, patient and staff surveys and (decibel) dB readings. This evaluation will be based on measurements taken in three phases; before nurse education on the interaction of noise and patient health, immediately after this education, and 6 months after this education.

References Call, R. (2007). Sound practices: noise control in the healthcare environment. Academy Journal. 10(1) pp 14-15. Shelton P. (2000). Measuring and improving patient satisfaction. Gaithersburg, MD. Aspen Publishers.