What to expect during your hospital stay

Before you come into hospital, your doctor will decide whether your surgery or procedure requires you to stay overnight or can be performed as a day procedure. Most patients are admitted on the day of their planned surgery or procedure.

Specific information about your surgery or procedure is provided by your doctor or in your admission letter. The hospital may contact you prior to your surgery to discuss aspects of your care and admission.

The admissions process

When you arrive to hospital our caregivers will ensure your hospital admission requirements are complete, including asking for your consent for the surgery or procedure you will be having.

You will be given a patient identification band to wear and we will confirm your identification before providing any treatment or procedure, including giving medication.

You may need to wait in a patient lounge or your room before having your surgery or procedure. We try our best to keep waiting times as short as possible and will let you know if any unexpected delays happen.

Keeping loved ones informed

To ensure our caregivers can dedicate their time to looking after you, we will ask you to nominate one support person to act as our main point of contact.

Recovery after your procedure

After your surgery or procedure our nursing caregivers will monitor your recovery and perform regular observations such as blood pressure, oxygen levels and temperature. You may also receive care from a range of medical, nursing, allied health and administrative caregivers.

Day patients

As a day patient, you will return home on the same day as your surgery or procedure. Day procedures and surgeries are safe, cost-effective for you, and allow you to return to your regular activities as quickly as possible.

A range of general, ophthalmology, orthopaedic, gynaecology and plastic surgery procedures may be performed as day cases.

A day surgery or procedure could take 4 to 6 hours to complete from your time of admission to discharge. This will vary depending on the type of procedure and the operating list for the day.

Once you are awake, your nursing caregiver will inform you when it is safe to get out of bed and eat and drink. They will also contact your nominated person to arrange for them to collect you.

After your surgery

In the first 24 hours after surgery, please do not:

• drive a motor vehicle
• use any machinery or tools
• drink alcohol
• make important decisions such as signing legal documents
• do anything that requires a high level of alertness.

Overnight patients

As an overnight patient you will be transferred to your room after your procedure.

Your room

We offer comfortable rooms to help in your recovery. We have a mixture of single and shared rooms across our facilities and make every effort to provide your room preference. Please note in some instances private rooms may not be available as these must be allocated based on clinical need at the time.

Call bells are located in each room and in bathrooms to alert nursing caregivers when you need assistance.

Your going home checklist

• Organise for someone to take you home if you are unable to drive.
• Collect any discharge summaries, medications, x-rays or scans.
• Pack your personal items, and don’t forget your charger!
• You may need to pay for out-of-pocket expenses. Our pay my bill page outlines our various payment options.

Pastoral care available to all patients

Our pastoral care practitioners are an integral part of our model of holistic care. They are available to offer emotional and spiritual support to you and your loved ones at a time when you may feel more vulnerable than normal.

Our pastoral services are available free of charge to all patients and families regardless of spirituality, belief or culture.