Comparison of the auditory and visual privacy of emergency department treatment areas with curtains versus those with solid walls

Study objective: The design and function of emergency departments may allow breaches of privacy that could adversely affect patient satisfaction and medical care. We sought to determine whether patients perceive less privacy in ED treatment areas with curtains than in rooms with solid walls. Methods: Patients 18 years and older at a university hospital ED who received care in a room with solid walls and a door, a curtained area next to the nurses' station, or a curtained area away from the nurses' station were surveyed. Patients responded on a 5-point Likert scale to 11 questions regarding privacy. Differences between areas were determined by using the Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests and were considered significant at P values of less than .05. Results: Structured interviews were conducted with 108 ED patients. Responses from those in the curtained areas were similar. Compared with those in the rooms with walls, these patients more often believed that they could overhear others and that others could hear them, view them, hear personal information, and view personal parts of their bodies (P less than or equal to .04 for all). They also perceived a lower overall sense of privacy (P < .01). Of all those surveyed, 85.2% reported "a lot of" or 11 complete" respect for privacy by the staff, and 92.6% experienced at least as much privacy as they expected, with no difference between areas. Conclusion: Patients perceive significantly less auditory and visual privacy in ED treatment areas with curtains compared with a room with solid walls. Consideration of these findings in current practice and in future ED design and construction is suggested.