Community June 26, 2008
Hospital Tunes in to Patients’ Preferences With TV Options
With the help of IS&T/ Telecommunications and Patient Relations, hospital patients have exciting new television options.
The CARE channel - channel 54 - is a relaxation station that can help create a healing environment for patients, families and staff.
"The CARE Channel offers an alternative to commercial television, noise and other stressful distractions," said Paula Crombie, director, Social Work, who chairs the Service Excellence Quiet Team. "Combining nature images and soothing music, this programming provides uninterrupted music as an environmental tool to enhance and promote healing. The images run slowly and the instrumental music is calming.
"Sound is very distracting for hospital patients," said Crombie, who believes the CARE channel will help increase in patient and staff satisfaction and lower stress levels. Crombie noted that earplugs and head phones are also available for patients so they can they lessen the distraction of sound from the TV.
YNHH has also added the Swank movie channel - channel 7 - which offers a wide selection of choices, including popular movies like Harry Potter, Michael Clayton and Hairspray. Both the movie selection, which changes every three months, and the TV channel guide are posted on the YNHH Intranet. From the Intranet home page, click "Yale-New Haven," then "departments," then "IS&T/Telecommunications."
IS&T/Telecommunications is working on turning Hospital tunes in to patients' preferences with TV options channel 49 into the YNHH information channel - with the TV guide and the movie listing posted with the announcements that now run on the LCD screens in the hospital's public areas. "
The environment of care remains a powerful and effective tool in the hospital, and our new television offerings help patients with entertainment and relaxation," added Dave Depukat, communications assistant, Telecommunications, who worked on the installation of the new channels.
Article originally appeared in the June 26, 2008 issue of the Bulletin employee newsletter (page 2)
http://www.ynhh.org/bulletin_archive/2008/062608_Bulletin.pdf
