I think it bothers some more than others, so I'd be happy if there were an option (and might say "Whatever's free" for myself). But I remember last time this one was doing the rounds we knew an elderly couple who were dying in separate hospitals, never mind wards. No doubt there was a practical medical reason for this, in the nature of their illnesses, but their daughter was having to drive from Barrow to Kendal to visit them, and my brother kept saying "Wouldn't it be better for everyone, particularly the couple, if they could be put in adjacent beds?"