Wen-Jun Wang,1 Shu-Ping Zhou,2 Yun Liang,3 Chan-Juan Ma,4 Xin-Cui Wan4 

1Yunnan Key Laboratory of Statistical Modeling and Data Analysis, Yunnan University, Kunming, 650091, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Nursing, Hainan General Hospital, Hainan Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, 570311, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Nursing, Haikou Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Haikou, 570311, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Central Sterile Supply, Hainan General Hospital, Hainan Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, 570311, People’s Republic of China

Correspondence: Shu-Ping Zhou, Nursing Department, Hainan General Hospital, Hainan Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, No. 19, Xiuhua Road, Xiuying District, Haikou, Hainan Province, 571199, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 13976603351, Email shupingzhouzsp@126.com

Objective: This study aimed to investigate whether noise exposure in hospital sterile supply centers exacerbated the psychological burden on staff, potentially mediated by concerns about physiological health.
Methods: Between July 5 and August 4, 2023, 308 staffs from central sterile supply departments in 30 hospitals in Hainan were chosen by convenient sampling method. They completed self-administered questionnaires to assess noise exposure status and used the Self-Reporting Inventory-90 to quantify the psychological state of staff across three dimensions: somatization, anxiety, and sleep and diet. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to assess the influencing factors of their psychological symptoms, while a mediation model was used to analyze the pathway of noise affecting psychology.
Results: (1) Predominantly, respondents reported air gun sounds (76.3%) and pressure steam sterilizer noises (78.2%) within central sterile supply departments to be the most troublesome. (2) Approximately 25.33% of participants expressed that their sleep was significantly impacted by noise, while 32.14% expressed concerns about the potential serious effects on their health. (3) Logistic regression analysis revealed that age (OR,1.06, 95% CI, [1.01, 1.11]), educational background (OR, 0.65, 95% CI, [0.49, 0.85]), perceived noise exposure (OR,1.57, 95% CI, [1.04, 2.48]), health concerns (OR, 1.91, 95% CI, [1.06, 3.52]), and hearing loss (OR, 1.46,95% CI [1.02, 2.10]) emerged as significant influencing factors of psychological symptoms. (4) Mediation effect model analysis demonstrated that health concerns (mediation effect value=0.11, 95% CI [0.08, 0.16], Effect ratio=53.83%) mediated the impact of noise affecting psychological state.
Conclusion: Noise exposure represents a concealed risk factor for service quality within hospital central sterile supply departments, with health concerns serving as a mediating factor in the relationship between noise exposure and psychological well-being.

Keywords: exposure to noise, health concerns, mediation effect, psychological state, staff in central sterile supply department, China