Which statement describes environmental stress reduction in hospital design?

• A. Increasing sensory overload
• B. Reducing sensory overload
• C. Isolating patients from family
• D. Increasing noise and traffic

Answer: (B)

Reducing sensory overload is the best description of environmental stress reduction in hospital design. In a hospital, constant noise, bright or erratic lighting, interruptions, and busy hallways can keep a patient’s body in a state of heightened arousal, which can impair sleep, raise heart rate, and slow healing. Designing spaces that minimize these stressors—private or well-insulated rooms, sound-absorbing materials, lighting that supports circadian rhythms, clear wayfinding, and access to nature or views—helps the patient relax and recover.

Choices that would raise sensory input or disrupt social support—like more noise and traffic or isolating patients from family—would hinder healing, underscoring why reducing sensory overload is the correct focus.