A national study has found that hospitals are hard places to get well.
They're too loud.
Hospital officials in Fort Wayne say they have stepped up the efforts to keep noise down.
The newly-opened Parkview regional medical center and recently renovated Lutheran hospital were built with noise reduction in mind.
A study released this week says hospitals are too loud, especially at night.
Officials say they understand noise, and even lights, can trouble patients at night--
And both are taking steps to tone them down.
At Lutheran hospital, the lights get dimmer at night, and during quiet time in the afternoon.
Overhead pages are silenced and machines have more discreet alarms.
"We all learn when we're young that when you're not feeling well, the best thing to do is rest and get some sleep. And sometimes in a hospital that's a difficult thing to do, with all the noise," says Lutheran Hospital CEO Brian Bauer.
A medical journal report released this week says hospitals have too much noise-- and light-- during night and quiet hours.
About a year ago, Bauer says they started turning down the volume- with extra quiet hours, noise absorbing materials, and reducing electronic noise.
"We've actually seen our patient perception survey scores, in terms of quietness at night, increase over the past year. So our patients have given us the feedback that it's working and they appreciate it," Bauer says.
Officials say they're following the same steps at Parkview Regional Medical Center.
"We have looked at decibel ratings in terms of noise. Particularly with PRMC, we had a perfect opportunity to provide private rooms," says Parkview senior vice president Judy Boerger.
Boerger says they built the new facility with quiet in mind: sound-absorbent rooms, softer lighting and adjusted medication times.
"That's an area where we really focused a lot on, making sure that our standard times don't fall in the middle of the night, or that we're able to do those dosings," Boerger says.
They both say what's really important is patient feedback and any complaints are not falling on deaf ears.
In fact, Bauer says at Parkview, they have a committee of former patients who meet with current patients, listen to their feedback, and work with him and the hospital board to consider further changes.
They're too loud.
Hospital officials in Fort Wayne say they have stepped up the efforts to keep noise down.
The newly-opened Parkview regional medical center and recently renovated Lutheran hospital were built with noise reduction in mind.
A study released this week says hospitals are too loud, especially at night.
Officials say they understand noise, and even lights, can trouble patients at night--
And both are taking steps to tone them down.
At Lutheran hospital, the lights get dimmer at night, and during quiet time in the afternoon.
Overhead pages are silenced and machines have more discreet alarms.
"We all learn when we're young that when you're not feeling well, the best thing to do is rest and get some sleep. And sometimes in a hospital that's a difficult thing to do, with all the noise," says Lutheran Hospital CEO Brian Bauer.
A medical journal report released this week says hospitals have too much noise-- and light-- during night and quiet hours.
About a year ago, Bauer says they started turning down the volume- with extra quiet hours, noise absorbing materials, and reducing electronic noise.
"We've actually seen our patient perception survey scores, in terms of quietness at night, increase over the past year. So our patients have given us the feedback that it's working and they appreciate it," Bauer says.
Officials say they're following the same steps at Parkview Regional Medical Center.
"We have looked at decibel ratings in terms of noise. Particularly with PRMC, we had a perfect opportunity to provide private rooms," says Parkview senior vice president Judy Boerger.
Boerger says they built the new facility with quiet in mind: sound-absorbent rooms, softer lighting and adjusted medication times.
"That's an area where we really focused a lot on, making sure that our standard times don't fall in the middle of the night, or that we're able to do those dosings," Boerger says.
They both say what's really important is patient feedback and any complaints are not falling on deaf ears.
In fact, Bauer says at Parkview, they have a committee of former patients who meet with current patients, listen to their feedback, and work with him and the hospital board to consider further changes.
