The Effects of Waiting Room Music on Stress Levels of Patients In the Emergency Department
School Name
Chapin High School
Grade Level
11th Grade
Presentation Topic
Psychology
Presentation Type
Non-Mentored
Abstract
Nationally, the average wait time in an emergency room is over 200 minutes. As emergency departments only get more overcrowded, more people are making the decision to leave against medical advice before being seen by any medical professional. Because finding a permanent solution to this problem can be difficult due to understaffing and low funding, inexpensive and simple alternatives can be implemented to make patients feel less stressed and more tolerable of long waits. Using the Spielberger State Trait Anxiety Inventory survey as well as a behavioral observation, the stress levels of ED patients in both a room with classical music playing and a room without any music were measured to see if there is a significance between listening to music and experiencing lower stress levels. Based on the survey results, those waiting in the ED waiting room while music was playing experienced lower self-evaluated stress levels when compared to those waiting with no music. In addition, observation results indicated that when music is playing, those waiting while music was playing exhibited less stressful behavior tendencies than those waiting without music, signifying that patients were more at ease when in the ED waiting room with music playing.
Recommended Citation
Luoma, Emily, "The Effects of Waiting Room Music on Stress Levels of Patients In the Emergency Department" (2020). South Carolina Junior Academy of Science. 137.
https://scholarexchange.furman.edu/scjas/2020/all/137
Location
Furman Hall 208
Start Date
3-28-2020 9:29 AM
Presentation Format
Oral and Written
Group Project
No
The Effects of Waiting Room Music on Stress Levels of Patients In the Emergency Department
Furman Hall 208
Nationally, the average wait time in an emergency room is over 200 minutes. As emergency departments only get more overcrowded, more people are making the decision to leave against medical advice before being seen by any medical professional. Because finding a permanent solution to this problem can be difficult due to understaffing and low funding, inexpensive and simple alternatives can be implemented to make patients feel less stressed and more tolerable of long waits. Using the Spielberger State Trait Anxiety Inventory survey as well as a behavioral observation, the stress levels of ED patients in both a room with classical music playing and a room without any music were measured to see if there is a significance between listening to music and experiencing lower stress levels. Based on the survey results, those waiting in the ED waiting room while music was playing experienced lower self-evaluated stress levels when compared to those waiting with no music. In addition, observation results indicated that when music is playing, those waiting while music was playing exhibited less stressful behavior tendencies than those waiting without music, signifying that patients were more at ease when in the ED waiting room with music playing.
