Influence of Natural Images on Patients' Anxiety in the Waiting Rooms of Imaging Ward (VERTIM)

Pilot Study on the Influence of the Integration of Natural Images, According to Various Esthetic Approaches, in the Waiting Rooms of Imaging on the Anxiety Felt by the Patients

VERTIM study aims to evaluate the influence of different environments of imaging waiting rooms on the anxiety felt by patients before MRI or CT scans. For this, four environments (neutral/standard; and nature "green", "sea", and "zen") will be set up in MRI and CT waiting rooms.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: All Conditions for Which a CT or MRI Exam Can be Required
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Natural images in imaging waiting rooms

Detailed Description

Each year, the Medical Imaging Unit of the University Hospital of Bordeaux (CHU Bordeaux) receives 80,500 patients for CT or MRI scans in usual care. The length of waiting, the environment of the waiting room, the reasons for the examination are factors that increase the levels of anxiety during waiting and but also during early examination.

Previous studies have shown that the integration of nature (real as well as artificial) is likely to decrease the level of anxiety. Before implementing a multicentre and randomised trial, a pilot study is necessary to assess the feasibility of the procedure, to test the relevance of the tools, to identify the influence of socio-cultural and socio-demographic characteristics on anxiety's level.

For this, the present study will be conducted over the same period of the year in order to avoid seasonality biases. The study will take place over 8 weeks, during which MRI or scanner patients will be exposed either to the neutral environment (standard environment of the waiting room) or to one of the 3 environments (wall posters representing the nature ("green", "sea", "zen")).

There is no specific intervention assigned to the study participants, i.e. the patients will receive one of the four environments as part of routine medical care, and a researcher studies the effect of this environment on anxiety's level. Every week, one environment will be set up in the MRI or scanner waiting room and the study will be proposed to all eligible patients present in this room. Fifty patients are expected each week so that 100 patients per environment and equally distributed between the MRI and scanner waiting rooms are expected.

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Actual): 418

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• France
  • Bordeaux, France, 33076
    • Hopital Pellegrin

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

The participants are major patients who will be present in the waiting room of the MRI or the scanner in order to carry out one of these two exams

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• patient 18 yrs and older;
• patients in MRI or scanner's waiting room awaiting one of these 2 exams;
• patients not objecting to answer questionnaires;
• patient covered under social security

Exclusion Criteria:

• patient <18yrs old;
• patients with hearing and visual impairments;
• patients unable to answer questionnaires;
• patients awaiting for other exams than MRI or scanner;
• legally protected patient

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Number of groups / cohorts

4

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort	Intervention / Treatment
Control; The CONTROL (neutral) environment corresponds to the standard environment of the imaging waiting rooms
Zen; The ZEN environment will represent a clean, minimalist nature	Other: Natural images in imaging waiting rooms; Standard environment for hospital imaging waiting rooms; Other Names: Neutral
Green; The GREEN environment will represent rural landscapes, undergrowth	Other: Natural images in imaging waiting rooms; Standard environment for hospital imaging waiting rooms; Other Names: Neutral
Sea; The SEA environment will represent lakes, ponds, seaside	Other: Natural images in imaging waiting rooms; Standard environment for hospital imaging waiting rooms; Other Names: Neutral

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Average of the scores of anxiety-State (STAI-Y).	The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Average of the scores of emotional perception for the various esthetic approaches		The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room
Scores of the anxiety-trait in each of the subgroups		The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room
Scores of satisfaction for the various esthetic approaches		The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room
Strength of the interaction between emotional perception *environnement to explain the level of anxiety State	This outcome is measured through the scores of emotional perception (emotional perception), the nature of environment applied (control, zen, green or sea) and the STAI-Y scale score (level of state anxiety)	The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room
Reliability of the tool: coefficient alpha of Cronbach, or coefficient α ≥ 0,7.		The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room
Reason for MRI or scanner's prescription		The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room
Anxiolytic treatment and / or antidepressants (regular intake)		The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room
Anxiolytic treatment (specific prescription for examination)		The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room
gender		The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room
age		The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room
Level of education		The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room
professional category		The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room
Type of housing	house or building, floor, elevator, garden, ...	The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room
Lifestyle	urban, rural	The day the patient waits in the imaging waiting room

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University Hospital, Bordeaux

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): October 3, 2017
• Primary Completion (Actual): December 15, 2017
• Study Completion (Actual): December 15, 2017

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 12, 2017
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 25, 2017
• First Posted (Actual): August 30, 2017

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): December 27, 2017
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 26, 2017
• Last Verified: December 1, 2017

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: MRI; CT; Anxiety-state; Anxiety State-Trait
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Mental Disorders; Anxiety Disorders
• Other Study ID Numbers: CHUBX 2016/49

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO