Assessing Environmental Factors in Healthcare Facilities in Order to Improve the Experience of Patients, Staff, and the Quality of Imaging Procedures

University of Cincinnati

Status: Active, not recruiting

Conditions: Healthcare Facility Environment - Imaging

Treatments: Other: Light perception; Other: Sound perception; Other: Voice activation; Other: Smell perception; Other: Vibration perception

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT03456895

2017H0266/RP0525

Details and patient eligibility

About

The purpose of this study is to assess subjects' perceptions of environmental conditions and their preferences, and to expose subjects to varied environmental conditions as well as to assess their perception and feedback to these conditions. Another aim of this study is to explore potential patterns, factors of influence, and factors of reference in relation to the objectively assessed quality of the imagining examination and/or the perception of the patient. Finally, another aim of this study is to explore the feasibility of innovative biofeedback response capturing methodologies and technologies to guide the design of specific clinical investigations or trials.

Full description

Tremendous technological advances have occurred in recent years that enable easily controlled lights, sound, temperature, airflow as well as sensatory experiences such as smell or vibrations. While in some fields, these technologies are readily used, their potential application within healthcare environments has not yet been studied. In this study, we want to investigate how environmental factors including light, sound, temperature, smell, and sensatory experiences such as vibration are being perceived by subjects to develop environmental strategies using those components to create a more relaxing, and comforting experience for patients prior, during and after an imaging examination and for staff working in such environments. This data that will also guide to encourage changes of patient staff facility interactions to further improve the healthcare experience and quality of imaging examinations. To get a complete set of data, we plan to include volunteer participants, patients scheduled for imaging examinations, and staff working in the healthcare environment. This study has up to three different components: A, filling out survey forms to learn more about the perception of experience factors B, participating in facility experiences that may expose subjects to different facility factors and will then assess responses using additional survey forms or electronic measurement and data capture devices and C, during an imaging study the environment experience may be altered and assessments will be done to determine how relaxed the subject remains during the imagining study and the degree of motion induced artifacts. Feedback data will be obtained through survey tools as well as available consumer grade wearable devices that can continuously capture physiological parameters such as heart rate, motion, body perspiration and muscle tension. Only participants in the patient, staff, or volunteer populations who are not receiving an MRI imaging examination will participate in utilizing the wearable devices, as the wearable devices are not compatible with the MRI system. Patients receiving a PET/CT examination will be able to utilize a wearable device. For patients scheduled for an imaging examination the findings and perception of environmental factors will be compared with the image quality of the imaging examination and the feedback responses.

Enrollment: 15 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

Volunteer population:

• Male and female volunteers above the age of 18 who are able to give an informed consent or have a legal guardian able to give informed consent on their behalf

Staff population:

• Male and female staff at the Ohio State University above the age of 18 who are able to give informed consent

Patient population:

• Male and female patients greater than or equal to 18 years of age able to give informed consent or have a guardian able to give informed consent on their behalf
• Patients must have an imaging study such as an MRI, PET/CT, or CT scheduled to be performed at the Wright Center facility at Martha Morehouse

Exclusion criteria

• Unable to communicate in English
• Subjects that are incapable of giving informed consent or that do not have a legal guardian to give informed consent on their behalf.
• Prisoners.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Health Services Research

Allocation: Non-Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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15 participants in 3 patient groups

Healthy volunteer population

Experimental group

Description:

Healthy volunteer participants will have one of two options for participation: 1. completion of an electronic survey tool to assess the perception and preference of environmental factors (virtual participation) 2. completion of the above survey and participation in environmental experiences and providing feedback about their experience (physical participation)

Treatment:

Other: Sound perception

Other: Smell perception

Other: Voice activation

Other: Vibration perception

Other: Light perception

Patient population

Experimental group

Description:

Patient participants will complete a survey tool and either participate in specific environmental experience testing or may be exposed to an environmental experience during the imaging examination. The imaging exam will be assessed in regard to quality factors such as motion artifacts as an indicator of being relaxed during the examination.

Treatment:

Other: Sound perception

Other: Smell perception

Other: Voice activation

Other: Vibration perception

Other: Light perception

Staff population

Experimental group

Description:

Staff participants who work in imaging-related healthcare environments will complete survey tools regarding their perception and preference of environmental factors and/or will participate in environmental experiences and provide feedback.

Treatment:

Other: Sound perception

Other: Smell perception

Other: Voice activation

Other: Vibration perception

Other: Light perception