Nurse odor perception in various Japanese hospital settings

Because unpleasant hospital odors affect the nursing environment, we investigated nurses' perceptions of the odors of various hospital settings: hospital rooms, nurse stations, and human waste disposal rooms to discard the urine, stools and diapers. A questionnaire based on the Japanese Ministr...

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Main Authors: Masami Horiguchi, Erika Shudo, Kumiko Sato, Madoka Nakamura, Wakana Sai, Terumi Ohinata
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2015-12-01
Series:International Journal of Nursing Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352013215000800
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author Masami Horiguchi
Erika Shudo
Kumiko Sato
Madoka Nakamura
Wakana Sai
Terumi Ohinata
author_facet Masami Horiguchi
Erika Shudo
Kumiko Sato
Madoka Nakamura
Wakana Sai
Terumi Ohinata
author_sort Masami Horiguchi
collection DOAJ
description Because unpleasant hospital odors affect the nursing environment, we investigated nurses' perceptions of the odors of various hospital settings: hospital rooms, nurse stations, and human waste disposal rooms to discard the urine, stools and diapers. A questionnaire based on the Japanese Ministry of the Environment's guidelines on odor index regulation was used to assess nurses' perceptions of odor intensity, comfort, tolerability, and description in the aforementioned settings. Questionnaires were distributed to nursing department directors at three Japanese hospitals, who then disseminated the questionnaires to nursing staff. Of the 1,151 questionnaires distributed, 496 nurses participated. Human waste disposal rooms had greater odor intensity and were perceived as more uncomfortable than the other settings. Unpleasant odors in disposal rooms, hospital rooms, and nurse stations were rated as slightly intolerable in comparison. Hospital and disposal rooms were mainly described as having a “pungent odor such as of urine and stool.” In contrast, nurse stations were described as having other unpleasant odors, such as chemical, human-body-related, or sewage-like odors. Given that nurses spend much of their time in hospital rooms and nurse stations, odor management in these two settings would likely improve nurses' working conditions at hospitals. Improving odors at nurse stations is feasible. Such improvements could have indirect effects on nurse turnover and burnout.
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spelling doaj.art-12b4789dd52740ebaed8e83a4dc4de262022-12-21T21:47:26ZengElsevierInternational Journal of Nursing Sciences2352-01322015-12-012435536010.1016/j.ijnss.2015.08.009Nurse odor perception in various Japanese hospital settingsMasami Horiguchi0Erika Shudo1Kumiko Sato2Madoka Nakamura3Wakana Sai4Terumi Ohinata5Department of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Sapporo Medical University, Chuo-ku, Sapporo 060-8556, JapanDepartment of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Sapporo Medical University, Chuo-ku, Sapporo 060-8556, JapanDepartment of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Sapporo Medical University, Chuo-ku, Sapporo 060-8556, JapanDepartment of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Sapporo Medical University, Chuo-ku, Sapporo 060-8556, JapanDepartment of Nursing, Sapporo Medical University Hospital, Chuo-ku, Sapporo 060-8543, JapanDepartment of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Sapporo Medical University, Chuo-ku, Sapporo 060-8556, JapanBecause unpleasant hospital odors affect the nursing environment, we investigated nurses' perceptions of the odors of various hospital settings: hospital rooms, nurse stations, and human waste disposal rooms to discard the urine, stools and diapers. A questionnaire based on the Japanese Ministry of the Environment's guidelines on odor index regulation was used to assess nurses' perceptions of odor intensity, comfort, tolerability, and description in the aforementioned settings. Questionnaires were distributed to nursing department directors at three Japanese hospitals, who then disseminated the questionnaires to nursing staff. Of the 1,151 questionnaires distributed, 496 nurses participated. Human waste disposal rooms had greater odor intensity and were perceived as more uncomfortable than the other settings. Unpleasant odors in disposal rooms, hospital rooms, and nurse stations were rated as slightly intolerable in comparison. Hospital and disposal rooms were mainly described as having a “pungent odor such as of urine and stool.” In contrast, nurse stations were described as having other unpleasant odors, such as chemical, human-body-related, or sewage-like odors. Given that nurses spend much of their time in hospital rooms and nurse stations, odor management in these two settings would likely improve nurses' working conditions at hospitals. Improving odors at nurse stations is feasible. Such improvements could have indirect effects on nurse turnover and burnout.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352013215000800Hospital odorQuestionnaire for nursesIntensity of odorNurse station
spellingShingle Masami Horiguchi
Erika Shudo
Kumiko Sato
Madoka Nakamura
Wakana Sai
Terumi Ohinata
Nurse odor perception in various Japanese hospital settings
International Journal of Nursing Sciences
Hospital odor
Questionnaire for nurses
Intensity of odor
Nurse station
title Nurse odor perception in various Japanese hospital settings
title_full Nurse odor perception in various Japanese hospital settings
title_fullStr Nurse odor perception in various Japanese hospital settings
title_full_unstemmed Nurse odor perception in various Japanese hospital settings
title_short Nurse odor perception in various Japanese hospital settings
title_sort nurse odor perception in various japanese hospital settings
topic Hospital odor
Questionnaire for nurses
Intensity of odor
Nurse station
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352013215000800
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