Saturday, March 17, 2007

Health #2: Hospitals Should Allow Cell Phone Use

Posted by Simeon Margolis, M.D., Ph.D.
on Thu, Mar 15, 2007, 5:51 pm PDT
Source: http://health.yahoo.com/experts/healthnews/2453/hospitals-should-allow-cell-phone-use

Hospitals are probably the last place on Earth where cell phones are still not allowed. But if the conclusions of a recent study from the Mayo Clinic hold any sway, the cell phone armies will soon invade there, too. And I'm going to explain why that's a good thing.

Many hospitals ban the use of cell phones because they fear that the phones' electromagnetic signals might interfere with some medical devices and so endanger patients. The Federal Communications Commission has even warned that electronic medical devices in hospitals may be shut down by electromagnetic waves from cell phones. However, these fears and warnings are not based on any proof that cell phones are dangerous in the hospital environment.

A careful study by investigators at the Mayo Clinic, published in the March issue of Mayo Clinics Proceedings, puts these concerns to rest. They conducted 300 tests over a 5½-month period on the effects of two different cell phones on a total of 192 medical devices.

Tests were carried out in multiple patient-care areas, including intensive care units, to determine the effects of initiating or answering a call, talking on the phone, and the ringing of the telephone. None of these cell phone functions interfered with electronic equipment at any of the hospital sites. The authors conclude that "when cellular telephones are used in a normal way, no noticeable interference or interactions occurred with the medical devices."

So, cell phones don't disturb hospitals, though cell phone users might. I have never understood the love affair being carried out (in public) between Americans (and, increasingly, people around the world) and their cell phones; my wife and I have somehow managed very nicely to survive without one (two, actually). We have all been annoyed by the seemingly endless nattering on cell phones by passengers on trains and by fellow diners in restaurants.

And yet, I believe that hospitals should permit visitors to use cell phones. Visits to patients often occur at times of high stress when visitors want to maintain contacts with family and friends and may need to send or receive urgent messages.

My major concern is that loud, constant, and unnecessary talking by discourteous cell phone users will annoy other patients or visitors. If cell phones should be restricted anywhere, however, I vote to ban their use while driving a car.

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