The effects of hands free communication devices on clinical communication: balancing communication access needs with user control.

Hands Free Communication Device (HFCD) systems are a relatively new information and communication technology. HFCD systems enable clinicians to directly contact and communicate with one another using wearable, voice-controlled badges that are VoIP-based (voice-over IP) and are linked to one another over a wireless local area network (WLAN). This qualitative study utilized a grounded theory, multiple perspectives approach to understand how the use of HFCDs affected communication in the hospitals that implemented them. The study generated five themes revolving around HFCDs impact on communication. This paper specifically focuses on two of those themes: Communication Access and Control.