Operating room soundscape design intervention study

Noise levels in a typical Operating Room are often well beyond the recommended 45dB for a typical OR environment. Due to stringent cleanability requirements in hospitals, there are limited finishes that can be used in these rooms. Researchers from Gresham Smith and Siebein Acoustic are currently engaged in a research project to investigate how the design of the operating room environment can be acoustically optimized for staff well-being and better patient outcomes. . The study focuses on the environmental variables that can be controlled including the effects of diffusing panels, angling of the walls, and the use of special cleanable acoustic finishes on the ceiling in 3 prototypically sized Operating Rooms using 3-dimensional acoustic models. Acoustic metrics including Reverberation Time, Speech Transmission Index and clarity were compared for 11 scenarios. Results from the acoustical modeling showed that, comparing 11 different scenarios, rooms treated with absorption performed "best" on multiple metrics (Reverberation Time, Clarity, Speech Transmission Index/Intelligibility). Future research will be implemented within existing operating rooms of our hospital partner for in situ validation. Acoustical measurements will again be taken and evaluated against the initial findings and the perceptions of the users of the spaces.