Effects of Long-Term Noise Exposure on Mental Health and Sleep Quality of Emergency Medical Staff and Coping Strategies

The daytime and night-time noise-exposure levels in the emergency department were significantly higher than those in the general inpatient department (P < 0.05). The scores for somatisation, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, depression, anxiety, hostility, terror, psychoticism, PSQI and SCL-90 in the emergency department were higher than those in the general inpatient department (P < 0.05). The sleep duration and sleep efficiency of medical staff in the emergency department were significantly lower than those in the general inpatient department. The sleep latency time and awakening time were significantly higher than those in the general inpatient department (P < 0.05). Pearson correlation analysis showed that daytime noise-exposure level was positively correlated with the SCL-90 total score (r = 0.326, P < 0.001) and total PSQI score (r = 0.298, P = 0.021). Meanwhile, the night-time noise-exposure level was positively correlated with the SCL-90 total score (r = 0.435, P < 0.001), PSQI total score (r = 0.515, P < 0.001), sleep latency time (r = 0.422, P<0.001) and awakening time of emergency medical staff (r = 0.261, P < 0.001). Night-time noise exposure had negative correlations with sleep duration (r = -0.503, P < 0.001) and sleep efficiency (r = -0.293, P < 0.001).