We teamed up with Metropolitan Acoustics to give hospital patients a better night’s sleep. The following excerpt from Metropolitan Acoustics’ recent newsletter describes the steps we took to improve patients’ ability to sleep.

If you’ve ever had an overnight stay in a hospital, you know one of the most annoying aspects is all the noise. It’s hard to get a good night’s sleep and recover when medical equipment alarms, commotion in hallways, and people talking at nurses’ stations keep you up all night. Read on to learn more about how we reduce noise to keep patients and staff happier and healthier.

Metropolitan Acoustics was commissioned to help assess a problem at Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia. Specifically, sound transmission from the nurses’ stations to the surrounding patient rooms was a continuing source of discontent. To reduce this sound to the patient rooms, we worked with Gardner/Fox Associates to design a glass barrier with openings only at the egresses. No longer can people lean over the counter to talk; they have to go into the station. It also contained the sound from notification equipment and phones within the station. In addition to the glass, we recommended more absorptive ceiling tile in the nurses’ stations and in the corridors. Our readings showed that these changes reduced sound levels by 10 decibels, which loosely translates to being half as loud. The pictures above show the before and after images of a nurses’ station.”