ICU Environmental Noise and Healthcare Workers

This prospective observational study is designed to evaluate the potential auditory and non-auditory effects of intensive care unit environmental noise on healthcare workers. The study is being conducted in a tertiary training and research hospital and includes volunteer healthcare personnel working in intensive care units and hospital wards. Participants are classified according to their work setting, and comparisons are performed between the intensive care unit group and the ward group. The study focuses on occupational exposure to the intensive care environment and its possible association with cochlear function, perceived noise burden, noise sensitivity, anxiety levels, and functional effects related to workplace noise. Audiological assessment includes distortion product otoacoustic emission measurements, and questionnaire-based assessments are used to evaluate perceived noise-related burden and associated psychological and functional effects. The study aims to determine whether prolonged work in the intensive care environment is associated with measurable changes in hearing-related parameters and subjective outcomes when compared with work in hospital wards.