Comparison of noise levels between four hospital wings with different material treatments.

Abstract

Noise levels in four hospital areas of the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, NE, have been measured and compared to study the relationship between materials present in each of the zones and the resulting noise levels. The four areas evaluated, including three hospital wings and a neonatal intensive care unit, have varying levels of acoustic floor and ceiling treatments in the hallways and nurses’ stations. Sound pressure levels were logged every 10 s over a 24-h period in at least three different locations simultaneously within each area: at the nurses’ station, in the hallway, and in a nearby patient room. The resulting data were analyzed in terms of the hourly A-weighted equivalent sound levels (Leq) as well as various exceedance levels (Ln). Results indicate that the material finishes in a zone are found to affect the ambient sound levels within the nurses’ stations and hallways, while peak levels remain similar in most of the areas. Sound levels in the patient rooms, however, appear less correlated to materials in the hallway and nurses’ station and more impacted by the peak levels coming from those spaces as well as patient equipment.