BMJ 2014;349:g7504 doi: 10.1136/bmj.g7504 (Published 19 December 2014)
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Editorials
EDITORIALS CHRISTMAS 2014: EDITORIAL
Musical theatre Alex James Nicholls specialty registrar, trauma and orthopaedics, Carol O’Mahoney healthcare assistant Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, UK
Music in the operating theatre, if not too loud or distracting,1 has been shown to enhance surgeon performance2 and reduce patient anxiety levels for awake procedures.3
Smartphone ownership and use among the medical profession is widespread.4 5 Digital music is therefore readily available in the workplace. A wide variety of commercial speaker systems and docking stations are available to play music directly from smartphones, but these can be expensive and may require electrical testing and certification for use in hospital.
We sought a cheap, readily available alternative way to amplify music on a smartphone during local anaesthetic hand surgery. A search of the internet reveals anecdotal descriptions of homemade passive (unpowered) speakers being made from household items such as vases, paper cups, jam jars, and toilet paper rolls. The Medi-Vac Guardian 1200 mL suction canister (Cardinal Health, Waukegan, IL,USA) is readily available in our theatres and works in a similar way to amplify and clarify music when the smartphone is placed inside with its inbuilt speaker closest to the base of the canister (figure). We have found this to emit music at an acceptable volume around the operating theatre without being too loud or distracting. Competing interests: We have read and understood BMJ policy on declaration of interests and have no relevant interests to declare. 1 2 3 4 5
Way TJ, Long A, Weihing J, Ritchie R, Jones R, Bush M, et al. Effect of noise on auditory processing in the operating room. J Am Coll Surg 2013;216:933-8. Moris DN, Linos D. Music meets surgery: two sides to the art of “healing”. Surg Endosc 2013;27:719-23. Sadideen H, Parikh A, Dobbs T, Pay A, Critchley PS. Is there a role for music in reducing anxiety in plastic surgery minor operations? Ann R Coll Surg Engl 2012;94:152-4. Smart NJ. A survey of smartphone and tablet computer use by colorectal surgeons in the UK and Continental Europe. Colorectal Dis 2012;14:e535-8. O’Reilly MK, Nason GJ, Liddy S, Fitzgerald CW, Kelly ME, Shields C. DOCSS: doctors on-call smartphone study. Ir J Med Sci 2013 Dec 15.
Cite this as: BMJ 2014;349:g7504 © BMJ Publishing Group Ltd 2014
Correspondence to: A J Nicholls [email protected] For personal use only: See rights and reprints http://www.bmj.com/permissions
Subscribe: http://www.bmj.com/subscribe
Page 1 of 1
Editorials
EDITORIALS CHRISTMAS 2014: EDITORIAL
Musical theatre Alex James Nicholls specialty registrar, trauma and orthopaedics, Carol O’Mahoney healthcare assistant Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, UK
Music in the operating theatre, if not too loud or distracting,1 has been shown to enhance surgeon performance2 and reduce patient anxiety levels for awake procedures.3
Smartphone ownership and use among the medical profession is widespread.4 5 Digital music is therefore readily available in the workplace. A wide variety of commercial speaker systems and docking stations are available to play music directly from smartphones, but these can be expensive and may require electrical testing and certification for use in hospital.
We sought a cheap, readily available alternative way to amplify music on a smartphone during local anaesthetic hand surgery. A search of the internet reveals anecdotal descriptions of homemade passive (unpowered) speakers being made from household items such as vases, paper cups, jam jars, and toilet paper rolls. The Medi-Vac Guardian 1200 mL suction canister (Cardinal Health, Waukegan, IL,USA) is readily available in our theatres and works in a similar way to amplify and clarify music when the smartphone is placed inside with its inbuilt speaker closest to the base of the canister (figure). We have found this to emit music at an acceptable volume around the operating theatre without being too loud or distracting. Competing interests: We have read and understood BMJ policy on declaration of interests and have no relevant interests to declare. 1 2 3 4 5
Way TJ, Long A, Weihing J, Ritchie R, Jones R, Bush M, et al. Effect of noise on auditory processing in the operating room. J Am Coll Surg 2013;216:933-8. Moris DN, Linos D. Music meets surgery: two sides to the art of “healing”. Surg Endosc 2013;27:719-23. Sadideen H, Parikh A, Dobbs T, Pay A, Critchley PS. Is there a role for music in reducing anxiety in plastic surgery minor operations? Ann R Coll Surg Engl 2012;94:152-4. Smart NJ. A survey of smartphone and tablet computer use by colorectal surgeons in the UK and Continental Europe. Colorectal Dis 2012;14:e535-8. O’Reilly MK, Nason GJ, Liddy S, Fitzgerald CW, Kelly ME, Shields C. DOCSS: doctors on-call smartphone study. Ir J Med Sci 2013 Dec 15.
Cite this as: BMJ 2014;349:g7504 © BMJ Publishing Group Ltd 2014
Correspondence to: A J Nicholls [email protected] For personal use only: See rights and reprints http://www.bmj.com/permissions
Subscribe: http://www.bmj.com/subscribe
