Self-reported background noise and communicative health among healthcare workers

Introduction: Background noise in healthcare settings can significantly impact the communicative health of healthcare workers. This study aims to determine the relationship between self-reported background noise conditions and communicative health among healthcare workers. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in December 2021. Participants completed an online survey and recorded two voice samples, with and without a surgical mask. Results: The multivariate analysis showed that female registered nurses who spent more time commuting, perceived inadequate background noise conditions, experienced monotony at work, and frequently cleared their throats had significantly higher jitter values. For shimmer, factors such as marital status, job position, hospital services, working extra hours, inadequate space and background noise conditions, stress, laryngitis, colds, sleep duration, whispering, and speaking load were significantly associated with changes in shimmer among healthcare workers. Job position, inadequate background noise conditions, higher productivity during COVID-19, high stress, and screaming were associated with decreased scores on the Speech, Spatial, and Qualities of Hearing scale (Sp-SSQ12). Conclusion: These findings highlight that addressing background noise and improving working conditions could significantly enhance the communicative health and overall well-being of healthcare workers.