Speaker
Description
Neonatal ICUs exceed WHO noise limits >90% of time, disrupting infant development, family bonding, and staff performance. SoundSafe develops the first integrated soundscape assessment platform for NICUs, combining privacy-preserving Machine Listening, perceptual modeling, and human-centered design. Given the sensitivity of the environment, we embed privacy by design by automatically filtering speech in audio recordings. We deploy a multichannel audio array in Hospital Universitario de Donostia NICU, filtering speech via Universal Speech Codec while classifying sound types using YAMnet and extracting psychoacoustic features. Families and medical staff rate affective qualities per ISO 12913-2. We develop a SoundSafe Quality Index (SSQI) that integrates acoustic, event, and perceptual layers to predict soundscape quality. Co-designed with healthcare professionals via participatory workshops, the SSQI dashboard provides real-time, actionable insights on hospital tablets. Preliminary measurements show 51-56 dBA daytime levels vs. WHO 35 dBA target. Hospitals need a sustainable solution to assess soundscape quality. SoundSafe advances data-centric soundscape assessment for healthcare, supporting Spain's Digital Health Strategy 2021-26.