Staying Safe During Your Hospital Stay

Your health and safety is our highest priority. Together we can create an environment that is safe.

While you are in hospitals, we will discuss and offer treatments. We will provide treatments you understand and want while you’re in hospital.

There are brochures specific to each region. A summary of each is listed below and links to download these are in the downloads area above. 

Hospitals North West

This brochure outlines ways to keep yourself safe when staying in hospital, including:

• Your rights
• Be involved in your care
• Leaving hospital

Hospitals South

This brochure gives you information to assist:

• you in being involved in your care decisions
• keeping yourself safe
• as well as what staff do to involve you in your care decisions and keep you safe.

You are an important member of the health care team

How can I get the care I want and need?

• Speak up
• Be involved 
• Stay safe

You and your support people can:

• Be involved in discussions about your health
• Ask questions about your health, medicines, treatments, and choices
• Let us know what is important to you 
• Tell us if you need an interpreter
• Tell us if you are feeling worse 
• Tell us who you trust to make decisions for you if you are unable to
• Tell us about advance care planning documents
• Tell us if you are feeling sad, stressed, or worried
• Tell us if you need extra help
• Tell us if you have any allergies or reactions to anything (e.g. to foods, medications, bandages and latex) Make sure you understand what is happening to you. Ask us to write it down, to tell your family, or to say it again
• Ask your doctor or nurse if a support person can stay with you in hospital
• Write questions or leave messages on Your Care Board
• Have visitors come within visiting hours

What you can expect from us:

• We will provide you with up-to-date information about your health every day
• We will make sure that a staff member of the same gender is in the room for sensitive procedures e.g. examinations or at your request
• You will generally be offered a choice of your preferred gender accommodation when sharing rooms with other patients. We will do our very best to make your preference happens, however, sometimes this is not possible
• We will involve you in decisions about your health
• We will ask important questions regularly to keep you safe, such as asking who you are and checking we have the right information about you
• We will check that you understand the treatments given to you and that you agree to have them
• We will ask you and your family how you are?
• We will write the day, date, and nurse’s name on the Your Care Board every day

What should I do if there are changes to my health?

We need to know about changes to your health so we can give you the care you need. You and your family or carers know your health and are the best people to let our doctors and nurses know about important changes.

Speak up if:

• You are feeling more unwell 
• There are changes to your breathing 
• You feel hot or cold
• You are feeling odd or different
• You are in pain, or your pain is getting worse
• You feel like vomiting or don’t want to eat
• You are extra sleepy
• You are unsure where you are
• You are worried about anything
• Your family are worried

What can I do if I don't feel listened to?

• Tell us if you or your family/carers are worried your health is not improving or becoming worse
• Ask to speak to the Nurse Unit Manager
• Ask to speak to your doctor
• If you feel you were not listened to or understood and you feel the patient’s life is in danger then you can start a CARE Call Response

When you make a CARE Call a special healthcare team will look into your concerns and check in on you. You can make a CARE Call by phoning (03) 6166 6744

When you call let reception staff know:

• Name of patient
• Your name if not the patient
• The ward the patient is in and bed number
• That you are making a CARE Call as you are concerned about the patient’s immediate health needs

How can I be involved in my discharge planning?

Discharge planning is the plan we make with you about leaving the hospital. Discharge planning happens every day of your hospital stay and makes sure that you are ready to leave hospital with all the right supports and follow ups in place.

The discharge plan may be to transfer you to another ward or hospital or even to have care continued at home. On your day of discharge, you may be transferred to the Transit Lounge to wait to go home.

You and your support people can:

• Ask questions about your discharge
• Ask when you are expected to leave hospital
• Ask if any tests or procedures are needed before you leave hospital and can they be done as an outpatient
• Ask staff for help if you think you will need extra support at home
• Ask staff about your medicines you will be taking when you go home and for a list of medicines.
• Talk with family about how you will get home from hospital and when you will be leaving
• Let staff know who your general practitioner is

What can you expect from us:

• Every day staff will talk to you about your discharge plan and expected date of discharge
• Staff will discuss with you any follow-up appointments you need
• Staff will discuss with you what symptoms to look for and who to call if any problems develop
• Staff will discuss with you any changes to your medications
• Staff will provide you with information about your medications.
• A summary of your hospital stay and care will be sent to your named general practitioner

Using medicines safely

Taking care with medicines

Medicines can cause harm if not prescribed and given correctly Together we can make sure that you receive the medicines that are right for you.

You and your support people can:

• Tell us about what medicines you take or use, including prescription and non-prescription medications. Include eye drops, creams, inhalers.
• Tell us about any allergies or side-effects you have
• Ask your nurse before taking any medicines on your own
• Ask us to tell you about new medicine

What you can expect from us:

• We will ask you about the medicines you take
• We will store medicines you bring from home for you
• We will check that we are giving medicine to the right person by asking for your name and date of birth every time
• Every time we give you medicine, we will tell you the name of the medicine and why we are giving it to you
• We will check that you don’t have any allergies to the medicine before we give it to you

Stopping infections

Everyone admitted to hospital are at some risk of getting an infection.

You and your support people can:

• Cover your mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing and wash your hands straight afterwards
• Wash your hands with soap and water after going to the toilet
• Clean your hands before eating, by washing hands with soap and water or using alcohol-based hand rub or wipes provided
• Ask staff to clean their hands if you don’t see them do this
• Avoid touching equipment, bandages, or tubes
• Let us know if the bathroom or your room is not clean
• Ask visitors to wash their hands or use hand sanitiser when arriving and leaving
• Ask family or friends with colds, upset tummies or rashes to not visit you
• Follow instructions on how to treat and care for any wounds
• Wear a face mask when you are moving around the ward and hospital

What you can expect from us:

• All areas of the hospital are cleaned daily and when needed
• All our staff will clean their hands and we check regularly that this is happening
• We will provide you with hand wipes. They will be at your bedside when you are admitted. Please ask staff for more when you are running low
• We provide alcohol-based hand rub throughout the hospital and patients, staff and visitors are encouraged to use this

Keep active and moving safely

To help keep you as well as possible, it’s important that you keep moving.

You can:

• Keep moving where possible
• Bring your walking frame or stick with you to hospital and use them
• Bring your glasses or hearing aids from home and use them
• Wear flat shoes which have a sole with grip
• Ask what basic exercises you can do in your bed or chair
• Ask us what is being done to prevent blood clots
• Ring your call bell if you need help to get out of a chair or bed or to walk to the bathroom

Tell us immediately if:

• You feel pain, swelling, or heat in your leg
• You see red marks on your skin or broken skin, including blisters
• The veins near the surface of your leg appear larger than normal
• If you develop chest pain, shortness of breath or cough up blood, call for help immediately

What can you expect from us:

• We may recommend that you get help or be supervised when moving around the ward
• We will refer you to allied health staff to support you to move
• We will always leave you with your call bell within your reach
• We will help you to change positions if required

Sleep and rest

A hospital stay can be a stressful, emotional, and tiring time for you and your loved ones:

• Sleep helps your body repair itself
• Being rested and relaxed may help you manage your pain better

You can:

• Wear an eye mask or ear plugs. Please supply your own
• Listen to music. Please do not disturb others. (consider headphones)
• Plan naps for earlier in the day
• Keep moving as much as possible throughout the day
• Ask staff for extra blankets and pillows if you need them
• Ask staff to ask visitors to come back

What you can expect from us:

• We will lower the lights in the ward overnight
• We will open curtains during the day
• We will monitor your pain and offer medications

Food and fluid (drink)

Nutritious food and drinks are needed for health and will:

• Help you recover
• Shorten your stay in hospital

You can:

• Let us know if you have any food allergies
• Let us know if you have specific food needs
• Ask family and friends to bring in your favourite food, provided you have no limits to what you may eat
• Drink fluids as recommended
• Ask for help if you need
• Wear false teeth when eating if you have them

What you can expect from us:

• We offer you menus daily to choose your next day’s meals
• We provide drinking water
• We deliver meals to your bedside that are nutritious and at the right temperature

Your feedback and how we went

Feedback:

Share your experience by giving us feedback. It will help us improve the overall patient experience.

You can provide this via:
Email: [email protected]

Post:
Consumer Liaison Unit
GPO Box 1061
Hobart TAS 7001

Phone: 1800 811 911
Ask staff for a feedback form.

All admitted patients will receive a survey about your hospital stay from our survey company via your mobile phone number provided on admission or by email if you have no mobile number listed.
Please take the time to complete the survey as it will assist the hospital in providing care.