Hospitals are so loud that they are hindering patients’ recovery, according to experts who recommend broadcasting white noise as a distraction.
Noisy wards can be as deafening as loud music or revving motorbikes and this is not only irritating but can be damaging for sick patients trying to recuperate, nursing researchers say.
The stress of a constant din is a common cause of complaints among patients who are often driven to leave hospital earlier than they should to escape it, the specialists say in The BMJ.
Alarms, ringing phones, conversations, televisions and squeaky trolleys add up to a cacophony that the NHS should do more to prevent, according to a team at King’s College London.
Andreas Xyrichis, lead author of the paper, said: “We