Levels of noise in a public hospital laundry

PURPOSE: to measure the noise levels in different shifts of Hospital São Paulo's (HSP) laundry and provide information on health and hearing conservation to the employees and supervisors of the sector. METHODS: this is a descriptive transversal study. The noise levels were checked using a Sound Pressure Meter in the Clean Area of the laundry, in three periods of the day: morning (between 7am and 8am), afternoon (between 12pm and 1pm) and night (between 5pm and 6pm), in three different days and each measurement lasted five minutes. The examiners also checked the use of Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) by the employees. RESULTS: we observed 11 machines (skylarks, dryers and washers) in the sector, which contribute to an important variation of noise levels in the laundry (70 to 101 dB) in the checked periods. The use of PPE by employees was rare, observing the use by only six employees (12.76%). CONCLUSIONS: regardless of the shift, Hospital São Paulo laundry's employees, who do not effectively use PPEs, are daily exposed to high levels of sound pressure and as the number of machines in operation increased, the noise levels were also higher.OBJETIVO: mensurar os níveis de ruído em diferentes turnos da lavanderia do Hospital São Paulo (HSP) e prestar esclarecimentos sobre a saúde e a conservação auditivas aos funcionários e supervisores do setor. MÉTODOS: trata-se de um estudo transversal descritivo. O ruído foi aferido por meio do medidor de pressão sonora na Área Limpa da lavanderia do HSP, em três períodos do dia: manhã (entre 7h e 8h), tarde (entre 12h e 13h) e noite (entre 17h e 18h), por três dias e cada medição durou cinco minutos. Observou-se o uso de Equipamento de Proteção Individual (EPI) pelos funcionários em cada ambiente do hospital. RESULTADOS: observou-se 11 máquinas (calandras, secadoras e lavadoras) no setor, que contribuiu para uma variação importante dos níveis de ruído na lavanderia (70 a 101 dB) nos períodos aferidos. O uso de EPI pelos funcionários foi raro, tendo sido observada sua utilização por seis funcionários (12,76%). CONCLUSÃO: independente do turno, os funcionários da lavanderia do Hospital São Paulo, os quais não fazem uso efetivo de EPIs, estão expostos diariamente a elevados níveis de pressão sonora, e que quanto maior o número de máquinas em funcionamento, maior foi o nível de ruído aferido.FESPUNIFESPUniversidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP)UNIFESPSciEL

Age at the diagnosis and in the beginning of intervention from hearing impaired children, in a public Brazilian hearing health service

Introduction: The earlier the diagnosis and the intervention from the hearing impairment less will be the impact for the development of cognitive abilities, hearing and of speech from the child. Objective: Characterize the age in the diagnosis and the beginning of intervention of the hearing loss and the accompaniment of the assisted children in a public Brazillian hearing health service - Espaço Reouvir from the Clinicas Hospital from the Medical School from the University of São Paulo. Method: Retrospective study with information from 166 medical records from children regarding the: gender; etiology, type, degree and laterality of the hearing impairment; age in the diagnosis and adaptation of the Hearing aids (HA) and accompaniment in the service. Results: The sample was composed by 56% men and 44% women. The prevailing etiology was from multifactorial origin. The hearing loss from the neurosensory type occurred in 88,6% of the cases. The degree of moderate hearing loss was the most frequent (30,7%), symmetry in both ears was found in 69,9% of the cases and unilateral hearing loss in 2,4%. The average age in the diagnosis was of 5,46 years and in the intervention was of 6,86 years. A total of 96,98% of children had already completed the process of adaptation and 78,32% still remained in the accompaniment. Conclusion: The program Reouvir-HCFMUSP still receives children, both for diagnosis and or intervention in a late manner. However, still is possible the realization of the accompaniment of a significant number of users of the hearing aids, enabling a process of adaptation more effective