If you are due to come into Woodlands Hospital for a procedure that requires you to stay in overnight, the information below will help you to prepare.

• Your admission
• What should you bring to hospital?
• On arrival
• Personal possessions
• The hospital team
• Consenting to treatment
• Your information and confidentiality
• Mobile phones
• No smoking policy
• Your discharge home

Please contact your Ward if you need any more information or have any questions.

Your Admission

Where to go when you arrive at the hospital:

If you are uncertain about when to come in, or where to go, please telephone the contact number on your admission letter.

You may be invited to attend a pre-assessment clinic. At the clinic you will have the opportunity to discuss your needs and some investigations may be carried out to make sure that you are ready for admission.

We aim to respect your privacy, dignity and religious and cultural beliefs at all times. If you have any special needs, such as washing or praying facilities, please discuss this at your pre-assessment clinic, or telephone the contact number on your admission letter.

Please call the number on your admissions letter if:

• You cannot make your admission date. Please contact us within 72 hours of receipt of your letter, so we can rearrange your appointment and give your bed to someone else.  If you fail to contact us in these circumstances, it could affect your position on the hospital’s waiting list.
• You think you have been exposed to an infection (such as chicken pox), or develop any of the following symptoms within the three days before your admission date – cough, cold, vomiting or diarrhea. The admissions team will be able to advise what you should do in these circumstances.

Confirming your admission date

We will do everything we can to make sure there is no change to your admission date.  However, please do not leave home until we have contacted you to confirm a bed is available.  This is because, very occasionally, an emergency admission might need to be given first priority.

Admissions on the day before your surgery

If your admission is on the day prior to your surgery, you should have heard whether your bed is available from the admissions team by 2.00pm on the day of your admission into hospital. If you have not heard from the team by 2.00pm, please contact them using the telephone number shown on your letter.

Admissions on the day of surgery

If your admission is taking place on the same day as your surgery, you will be advised in advance whether your surgery will be in the morning or the afternoon. If you are having surgery in the morning, you need to arrive at the hospital by 7:30am. If you are having surgery in the afternoon, you will be contacted by the admissions team by 9:00am on the day of your surgery to confirm your bed.

What should you bring?

Before you leave home, please check that you have packed:

• Your admission letter and any other information we have sent to you.
• All medications you are taking or using, including prescription medications, medicines you have bought or alternative medicines, such as herbal remedies.
• Small amounts of money in case you want to buy a newspaper or use the telephone.
• The name, address, and telephone number of your GP (if you have one) and your next of kin.
• Nightclothes, a dressing gown, slippers and a pair of comfortable flat shoes.
• Day clothes – a tracksuit or other comfortable clothes.
• Your glasses and/or contact lenses.
• Your hearing aid if you use one
• Any mobility aids you use, such as a walking stick or walking frame.
• A brush or comb.
• Shaving equipment.
• A toothbrush and toothpaste.
• Soap and shampoo.
• Sanitary products (such as tampons).
• A towel and flannel.
• Other toiletries.
• Items of religious importance to you.

You might also want to bring:

•  Books and magazines.
•  Writing paper, pens and your address book.

Please do not bring:

• Large amounts of money, jewellery or other valuables.
• Alcohol or food.
• Large bags or suitcases because storage space is limited.

Don’t forget to:

• Cancel any deliveries at home, such as newspapers or milk.
• Cancel any home help you may have.
• Arrange for pets to be cared for.
• Tell your family and friends you are coming into hospital.
• Remove any nail polish and false nails.

On Arrival

Once you arrive at the hospital, there are signs postsed to help you find your way. Your admission letter gives you the details of where to go when you arrive.  If you are not sure, please ask at the security booth.

When you arrive on the ward, please:

• Hand all of your medications to your nurse.  They will be checked to make sure they are safe to take and we will keep a record of all the medicines you take during your stay.
• Tell us if you have any allergies or side-effects to any medication.
• Give us as much information about your condition, symptoms or medication as possible, so that our staff can care for you.

If you need a medical certificate for your employer or for national insurance purposes, please let the ward staff know when you arrive or during your stay.

Personal possessions

We provide a bedside cupboard for your personal possessions.  It should not be used for valuable items.

Valuable items

We ask that, whenever possible, you do not bring valuables, such as jewellery or large sums of money into hospital.  Although we will do our best to offer you privacy on the ward, hospitals are public buildings and we cannot accept liability for mislaid or stolen property or money that is not handed in for safekeeping.

If you must bring valuables with you, they should be handed to your nurse when you arrive, so we can arrange for safekeeping.  You will be asked to sign a disclaimer for any property not put into safekeeping.

Your valuables will be returned to you when you are ready to leave hospital. 

The Hospital team

To help you identify who everybody is, all staff wear a name badge giving their name and occupation.  If you cannot see their badge, please ask the member of staff to show it to you.

When you arrive on the ward, a nurse will welcome you and show you where to go. You will be under the care of a consultant (senior doctor), nurses and other healthcare professionals, such as pharmacists and radiographers. The senior consulant will investigate, diagnose and treat you, see you regularly and decide when you are ready to leave hospital. If you would like to see a female doctor, we will do our best to meet this request where possible.

A registered nurse will be responsible for your nursing care during your hospital stay, and other nurses and healthcare assistants will also participate in your care.

Every ward has an experienced sister or nurse in charge who is responsible for overall management of the area. Groups of wards are supervised by matrons, who are responsible for standards of care and cleanliness and will help deal with complaints.

Please ask to see the sister, charge nurse or matron if you have any questions or concerns, they will be happy to talk to you.

Consenting to treatment

We want to make sure you fully understand your condition and the treatment choices available to you.  

Before you receive any treatment, the doctor or nurse will explain what he or she is recommending and will discuss with you any concerns you may have and answer your questions. It is important that you understand what is going to happen to you.  

No treatment is carried out without your consent unless it is an emergency, you are incapacitated or you are unconscious.

Your information and confidentiality

Everyone working in the Woodlands Hospital Limited has a legal duty to keep any information about you confidential. Your GP will be told of your progress unless you ask us not to do this. We have a legal duty to hold certain information about you. We will use this information to care for you, and it will also be used to help us to run and monitor the quality of our services. Apart from these purposes, no information about you will be used in a way that can identify you unless we have asked for your permission.

We might use some of the information about you for research and education, but only after we have removed any details which would make it possible to identify you.  Please let us know if you are unhappy about this.

Mobile phones

Mobile phones should not be used in clinical areas of the hospital where they may interfere with medical equipment or disturb other patients. Please check with staff before you use your phone. 

All patients have a right to privacy, so please do not use camera-phones to take pictures in the hospital. 

Smoking

Woodlands Hospital has a smoke-free policy and smoking is not permitted within hospital buildings or grounds.

Your discharge home

Your discharge home starts at the point you are admitted to hospital!

We need your help in planning how you will leave the hospital, where you may be transferred to, and to ensure you get the best ongoing care once you are ready to leave hospital.

If your discharge is planned, you will be able to leave hospital knowing that any future care you may need has already been arranged. 

You are required to settle your account before being allowed to leave our premises.