The Effects of Music on Anxiety Levels in Surgical Waiting Rooms for Family and Friends
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Preoperative anxiety has been proven to cause complications both during and after the procedure. These complications range from aggressive behavior to hemodynamic instability. One factor that may impact preoperative patient anxiety is the anxiety of the family members and friends who accompany the patient. Current literature shows a strong correlation between music and decreased anxiety in family members and friends. Therefore, this project is a quality improvement project to provide potential benefits of using music in waiting rooms and by measuring the different anxiety levels between the two groups. Advanced Aesthetics was chosen as the site for the scholarly project data collection. Working with the key players to identify possible limitations helped the researchers understand the background of the business and the environment involved in observation. Data was collected on 8 days, 4 days with music playing and 4 days without music playing. Each participant was asked to fill out a State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). An independent two sample t-test was used for data analysis to compare the difference between the music group and the non-music group. Statistical analysis was completed on both the state anxiety scores and the trait anxiety scores between the music group and the non-music group. Low participation yielded results that were not statistically significant in the state anxiety scores when music was played versus when music was not played. Overall, the project was well received by both the facility where the study occurred as well as those that did participate. This study can be used for an evaluation of evidence-based recommendations on the use of music in waiting room and its effect on anxiety.