As a retired physician, I worry what will happen if Evanston approves Northwestern University’s plan for concerts and mega-events at a rebuilt Ryan Field stadium. Specifically, I worry about the impact on Northshore University Health System’s Evanston Hospital, which stands just 2,000 feet away from the proposed arena.
Northwestern’s plan will restrict hospital access and subject patients and caregivers to noise that is incompatible with the standard of care.
I remember my nights and weekends on call when I was practicing. For emergency surgery, life-threatening obstetric complications, trauma, strokes and heart attacks, we needed to quickly assemble a team of operating room staff, nurses, X-ray techs, anesthesiologists, radiologists, cardiologists and surgeons. Most of these folks were not already at the hospital but had to drive in, park, change into scrubs, and assess studies before they could treat the patient. With a patient hemorrhaging after a cesarean section, an evolving stroke, or some other urgent condition, minutes can make the difference between recovery and permanent disability — or even death.
In May of this year, concert traffic choked the streets of Tinley Park near the Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre, where would-be concertgoers sat in cars for several hours. Many saw only the tail end of the show or missed it entirely. Northwestern, even with fewer stadium seats, proposes a concert venue larger than Tinley Park’s; its traffic plan entails getting concertgoers in and out on some 200 shuttle bus runs. Even if that plan were rooted in reality — which I doubt — the proposed arena promises to clog key arteries of access to Evanston Hospital.
Arena concerts a big problem
In addition to the hospital, a fire station sits just a few blocks from Ryan Field. Hours of heavy traffic, including trucks, buses, cars and ride-shares, will delay ambulances and fire engines.
The emergency responders of Evanston and surrounding suburbs already plan around Northwestern football games. With the new arena having 10 arena-size concerts per year and an unlimited number of smaller events, how much longer will it take an ambulance carrying someone with an asthma attack or chest pain to reach the hospital? What if a mass casualty like the one in Highland Park coincided with a big concert? Hospital staff and administrators must consider such scenarios.
And then there is the noise. With stadium concerts averaging 100 decibels, noise is not just a concern for residential neighbors — it will be harmful to hospital patients and caregivers. The National Institutes of Health, the World Health Organization and other medical authorities recommend maximum hospital noise levels of 40 to 45 decibels. A 2021 study noted that “noise affects the well-being of patients, slowing their recovery, reducing the productivity of professionals, and increasing the occurrence of medical errors.”
This is especially true for acute surgical wards. I can remember in the operating room how hard it was to communicate with the other members of the operating room team when ambient noise rose. Although Northwestern claims its plan will direct noise from the arena northward, away from the hospital, amplified bass is not directional and will penetrate patient rooms, waiting rooms, labs and operating rooms.
With the stadium a mere 2,000 feet away, it defies belief that the hospital will be spared concert noise.
For the health of the residents of Evanston and surrounding communities, Evanston’s City Council and Northwestern should consider the total impact of the Ryan Field proposal. Please, do not jeopardize our health by turning Ryan Field into Soldier Field. Think of the patients.
Ronald Meyer is a retired anesthesiologist who lives in Wilmette.
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