PORT ANGELES — Shhhhh.
Or you’ll be coned.
Olympic Medical Center has formed a noise reduction group to make overnight patient stays a little more pleasant.
Hospital officials say they recognize that noise is a problem at OMC and that it needs to be taken seriously.
“In two days, we have seen a huge difference already,” said Tanya Rutherford, director of OMC’s medical, surgical and pediatric unit, at Wednesday’s board meeting.
Since telling another person to pipe down can be difficult for some people, the noise reduction group has made orange and yellow quiet zone cones.
If an employee or patient is being too loud, they get the cone.
“That’s their cue to be quiet,” Rutherford said.
The pilot project is taking place in OMC’s medical, surgical and pediatric unit — the largest at the Port Angeles hospital.
If successful, it may be used in other wings.
“What we’re doing is the admitting nurse is informing the patient and/or family member of our commitment to try and provide a quiet environment that is conducive to healing,” Rutherford said.
Cards are placed on bedside tables informing the patient of the available “quiet time” services like ear plugs, additional pillows, a white-noise machine or a CD player with classical or big-band music.
“We already have patients utilizing our services,” Rutherford said.
The action group has a stop light to signify loudness and signs around the unit reminding people to watch their noise. A poster depicts three small children in scrubs making the “shhh” sign.
Future plans for the action group include TV headphones for patients, MP3 players and iPods, acoustic tiles, new wheels on carts and more signs.
The five-member Noise Action Reduction Group is composed of Rutherford, unit nursing supervisor Gretchen Souza, ward secretary Anna Albright and nurses Donna Moreau and Stephanie Mitchell.
A 2009-2010 Washington State Hospital Association survey found that OMC patients were more upset about noise than any other aspect of their overnight stays.
OMC scored 47 percent in the “quiet at night” category, while the overall patient satisfaction score was 63 percent.
Rutherford provided commissioners with actual comments from a patient survey.
Some excerpts:
• “I had to get better so I could get out of here and get a good night’s sleep. It was way too noisy.”
• “It sounded like there was a party going on last night. I wasn’t invited.”
• “The nursing care was great but I feel delirious from not getting enough sleep because it was too noisy.”
Rutherford said the problem goes beyond voices.
“A lot of it is environmental,” she said.
“It’s the way that our unit is shaped. It is the way things are designed.”
While you can’t eliminate hospital noise, Rutherford said, the action group will try to correct what it can.
“Our goals are to implement noise reduction strategies and interventions in our unit,” Rutherford said.
“And most importantly, we want to do what’s right for our patients.”
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-417-3537 or at rob.ollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
