1. Scope

Keywords

Rationale

Various organisations publish speech privacy performance guidance for healthcare settings using ASTM metrics such as Articulation Index (E1130) and Speech Privacy Class (E2638). Others require a particular Sound Transmission Class (E336) rating or Composite STCc rating with or without a controlled minimum background sound level to achieve a certain level of speech privacy. The metrics used in these guidance documents were developed for open and closed office environments rather than healthcare environments. The goals of this work item are to (i) review how ASTM speech privacy metrics are being used and perceived in the design of healthcare settings by ANSI/ASA, ASHRAE, FGI, and other guidelines/criteria across various organisations and jurisdictions, and (iii) determine whether either a new evaluation metric is required/an improvement, or (iii) provide reccomendations for the adaptation of the existing methods/metrics to healthcare settings, and/or (iv) issue additional guidance within the standards on their correct use in healthcare environment design and post-completion evaluation. Establishing performance criteria or design guidelines is outwith the scope of this work item and will be left to the various organisations. End users of this guide will be those involved in the acoustical design of healthcare environments such as acoustical consultants, specifiers, etc.