Text Message Conversation in Appointment Room

Creator: 
Jasmine Pringle (recorder), Michael Davis, Namratha Atluri, Tyler Couch (typing)
Description: 

This is a sound recording of a young adult male patient’s iPhone text message conversation in his appointment room at the Duke Student Wellness Center. In this recording, the patient receives several simultaneous text message sound notifications from a group chat, and he responds to them by typing out replies on his iPhone. This disturbance due to mobile phone use is very common in the healthcare system, either from the physician/ health professional, patient, or friends/ family that accompany or visit the patient. This sound describes how increasing reliance on and use of technological gadgets such as iPhones can hinder human relationships and natural conversations with people face to face. The constant sound notifications and texting as heard in this recording can not only distract the patient from giving the physician a full account of his illness and narrative, but it may also frustrate the physician and prevent him/ her from showing full appreciation of and empathy towards the patient. Ultimately, the text message sounds serve as a barrier for the patient and physician to establish effective communication and a trusting relationship.

Contributor: 
Namratha Atluri, Jasmine Pringle, Tyler Couch, Michael Davis
Type: 
Audio
Date: 
December 1, 2018
Location: 

Durham, North Carolina

Subject: 

Text Messages: iPhone, texts, noise, notification

Duration: 
00:00:16
Bit Rate/Frequency: 
48 kHz