About Your Stay

Your Room
Your Hospital Team
Your Comfort, Safety and Security
Going Home

Your Room

Your room is designed for your comfort. Any concerns or questions about your room should be directed to your nurse.

Hospital Bed
On most patient units, hospital beds are electronically operated and can be adjusted to several positions for your comfort and convenience. For your safety, the bed rails may be raised while you are sleeping, resting, recovering from surgery or taking certain medications. You can control the nurse call button, as well as bed adjustments, the television and lighting from your bed. A staff member will explain how to use the controls.

Bedside Table and Cabinet
Your over-the-bed table can be adjusted to make eating, reading or writing as comfortable as possible. The bedside cabinet provides storage space for your glasses, dentures, contact lenses and other personal items in their appropriate containers or cases. We advise you to keep your valuables at home. Although Rush has security guards posted throughout the Medical Center around the clock, Rush cannot assume responsibility for lost or stolen items.

Telephone
In most rooms, a bedside telephone is provided for your convenience. With the exception of intensive care units, each bed has its own telephone number so that you can receive calls directly. We ask that you receive your calls prior to 10 p.m. Use of a cell phone is not allowed in room.

When calling a department or office within the Medical Center, you need to dial only the last five digits of the number. For example, to reach someone at 942-5000, dial 2-5000. To reach "312" area code numbers: Dial "9" + the number you are calling. To reach all other area codes (for example "708," "847," "773," or "630"): Dial "9" + "1" + (area code) + the 7-digit number you are calling.

Television
All rooms have televisions and offer television service free of charge. All televisions are equipped with closed captioning. If you need assistance with your television, call ext. 2-5990. In consideration of other patients, play your television softly and turn it off at bedtime.

The Patient Information Network (PIN) is available on the television in your room. Channels 4, 13 and 16 (obstetrics/gynecology programming) offer a variety of programs, including health education and information, chapel services and entertainment. Channel 13 provides a listing of daily programs.

Your Meals
Our food and nutrition staff will deliver meals to your room that are well balanced and prepared according to your doctor’s orders. Each day you will receive a menu. If you need assistance with menu choices, please ask a staff member for help.

Written records of your food and fluid intake may be kept to help your care team evaluate your nutritional and medical needs. Please follow your nurse’s or dietitian’s instructions carefully.

If you have special dietary needs, please consult the dietitian so we can ensure that those needs are met.

Visiting Hours
Visitors are important to your well-being and recovery, and are welcome during visiting hours. General visiting hours are:
Rush (main hospital), 11 a.m. ­ 8 p.m.
Johnston R. Bowman Health Center, 10 a.m. ­ 8 p.m.

Special policies apply for intensive care units and other select units. Please check with the specific unit or the information desk at (312) 942-5695. We ask that no more than two visitors visit each patient at one time. Children under 16 years of age are not permitted to visit unless special arrangements are made. Visitors must check in at the information desk on the fourth floor, east end of the Atrium Building, to receive a special pass. This pass must be worn at all times while in at Rush.

Your Hospital Team

At Rush, a multidisciplinary team of health care professionals and support staff are dedicated to providing you with the highest quality of care. During your stay, you will meet a number of health care professionals who are here to help you physically, emotionally and spiritually.

Medical Staff

• Attending physicians, who are either private physicians or Rush employees, supervise patients’ medical care. They are members of the medical staff and the Rush University faculty. Your attending physician will order your examinations, tests, medications and treatments.
• Residents are licensed physicians who are completing advanced training in specialty areas. Resident physicians are on duty around the clock and work with your attending physician to assure that your care is constantly supervised.

• Unit directors are registered nurses with advanced skills and experience who have overall responsibility for patient care activities on the unit.
• Clinical nurse coordinators (CNCs) are registered nurses who are responsible for overseeing your care during your hospital stay.
• Registered nurses (RNs) plan, coordinate and evaluate your care and are a good source of information about your care.
• Nurse practitioners or clinical nurse specialists have advanced nursing degrees and can be found on many units.
• Additional nursing personnel include licensed practical nurses (LPNs), certified nurse assistants (CNAs) and patient care technicians (PCTs).

• Registered/licensed dietitians (RDs/LDs) work closely with your physician and the nutrition care team to develop a diet especially for you.
• Registered pharmacists review all of the medications you receive to ensure they are right for you and that there are no unwanted interactions with any other drugs, food or lab tests. If you would like to speak with a pharmacist while you are here, ask your nurse to arrange for a pharmacist to visit your room.
• Occupational therapists (OTs) help patients set goals to regain or develop the ability to perform everyday tasks, such as bathing, dressing and cooking. Physical therapists (PTs) provide services to patients who have impairments, functional limitations, disabilities or changes in physical function and health status resulting from injury, disease or other causes.
• Respiratory therapists (RTs) provide treatment for patients with breathing problems.

Staff Who Specialize in Emotional and Spiritual Support
Clinical resource coordinators (CRCs) are social workers or registered nurses who are available to help you deal with the stress of illness and its impact on your family. They are also available to help you with discharge planning and arranging for home care (see section on "Going Home"), and they can refer you to community support networks and resources.

Chaplains representing many faiths are available 24 hours a day to provide support during your hospitalization. Chaplains work on a referral basis. If you or your family would like to be visited by a chaplain, please let a staff member know, or call ext. 2-5571. Your own priest, minister or rabbi is also welcome to visit.

Other Members of Your Team

• Unit service managers (USMs) handle the nonmedical needs and environmental services of the unit and supervise the unit clerks on a given unit.
• Unit clerks answer the telephones, help to keep your medical records in order and serve as receptionists.
• Food and nutrition staff deliver your meals.
• Environmental services keeps your room and the unit clean and comfortable during your stay.
• Volunteers from the community give their time to help you and your family. Volunteers are available to visit with you and provide companionship and comfort. They can also bring you recreational materials, such as newspapers, books and craft items, and run errands to the gift shops. They will often help to escort you at the time of your discharge.
• Students from many disciplines are part of your health care team. As a premier academic medical center, Rush is actively involved in educating health care professionals of the future. Students on the unit are supervised by faculty and will identify themselves to you.

• A staff member on your patient care unit
• The Patient Relations Manager, Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m., at ext. 2-6979
• The administrator on-call may be paged by dialing 85-7123

Your Comfort, Safety and Security

Managing Pain
The doctors, nurses, pharamacists and other health care professionals at Rush care about your comfort and well-being while you are undergoing treatment, and they want that treatment to be as pain-free as possible.

Not every patient will experience pain, but those who do can feel better with proper treatment. In fact, patients who get pain relief are better equipped to participate in their treatment and recovery. That’s why at Rush, pain is considered to be the fifth vital sign and is measured whenever your other vital signs are taken.

Please talk openly with your doctors and nurses about your pain. The person in pain is the only one who knows how much pain he or she feels.

Here are some helpful things to know about pain medicine and pain:

• Studies show that getting "hooked" or "addicted" to pain medicine is very rare.
• The medicine will not stop working if you take too much medicine. But sometimes your body will get used to or tolerant of the medicine, which is not usually a problem because the amount of medicine can be changed or other medicines can be added.
• You should not wait until the pain becomes severe to take your medicine. Pain is much easier to control when it is mild than when it is severe.
• Telling your nurse or doctor about your pain does not make you a bad patient.

Medications
The medications you take during your hospital stay are prescribed by your physician, dispensed by the hospital pharmacy and administered by a nurse. If you have any questions or concerns about your medications, discuss them with your physician, nurse or pharmacist. For your own protection during your hospitalization, please do not eat or drink any food or beverages or take any medications that have not been ordered by your physician or arranged through your nurse. If you brought your own medications, speak with your nurse.

Tests and Procedures
During your stay, your physician may order special tests and procedures to help diagnose or treat your condition. If your authorization is needed for surgery or a medical procedure, you will be asked to sign a consent form. Talk with your physician or nurse if you have any questions.

Cellular Telephones and Electrical Appliances
Radio frequency interference from cellular telephones and other wireless devices (modems, etc.) may affect life-supporting medical equipment. Please place your cellular telephone and wireless devices in the off mode while in patient care areas. Since the hospital cannot be certain of the safety of your personal electrical appliances — such as television sets, radios, laptop computers, hair dryers or heating pads — we ask that you leave these items at home.

Emergency Drills
Occasionally the hospital conducts drills to test its various emergency systems. These tests may come to your attention because of ringing bells and messages over the public address system. In the case of a real emergency, you will receive instructions from your health care team.

Oxygen
Special procedures are required in areas where oxygen is located or being used. Electrically operated equipment and aerosol products are not permitted. Smoking is not permitted anywhere in the Medical Center, especially in rooms where oxygen is in use or on standby.

Valuables/Personal Property
Please keep only necessary personal items, such as a robe, slippers, toiletries and assistive devices (your walker, cane or crutches) with you during your stay. Do not keep jewelry, credit cards, large sums of money or other personal property in your room. When not in use, items such as eyeglasses, dentures and hearing aids should be stored in the proper containers. If you need a container, ask a staff member. The hospital will not assume responsibility for loss of valuables or personal property.

Security
Security department staff are professionally trained and certified. Upon request, a security guard will escort your guests to and from the parking garage. Call ext. 2-5678.

Going Home

Arranging to Leave
On most units, the discharge time is 11 a.m. The hospital staff will help you get ready to leave. If you are a patient in the main hospital, please arrange to be picked up at the ground level of the Atrium Building entrance, 1650 W. Harrison across from the parking garage. Johnston R. Bowman Health Center patients should be picked up at the entrance to the building, at 710 S. Paulina Street. Due to safety regulations, you cannot be taken to the garage in a wheelchair.

Discharge Instructions
At Rush, we care about your well being while you are at the hospital and once you get home. Before your leave Rush, a member of your health care team will review with you the guidelines you should follow after you are discharged. Following these instructions is an important part of your treatment plan. So please feel free to ask any questions about these instructions.

Gratuities
Our staff and volunteers are pleased to assist you and cannot accept gratuities.

Medical Records Copies
To request a copy of your medical record after you leave the hospital, call (312) 942-7262 for more information.

Flowers and Mail
Flowers delivered after your discharge will be returned to the florist, who will make arrangements for home delivery. Mail will be forwarded to the address that you gave at your admission. Questions? Call Volunteer Services at (312) 942-5574.

Discharge Checklist
The following is designed to help you prepare to leave the hospital. Have you …

• Reviewed with your physician, nurse or pharmacist all information about the medications and care you will need at home?
• Picked up any prescriptions that you need from the Professional Building pharmacy?
• Checked your room for any belongings you may have left in the drawers or closet?
• Picked up any valuables you may have left with the Admitting/Registration Department?
• Checked with a billing/financial counseling representative to ensure that all the proper forms have been completed.
• Confirmed that you have transportation home and that you will be picked up at the appropriate entrance (see "Arranging to Leave," above)? Your driver may leave the car at the entrance for a short time while picking you up. The driver should notify the attendant that he or she is picking up a patient for discharge.

Getting Help After You Go Home
To alleviate any anxiety or fears you may have, social workers and nurses at the Medical Center are available to help you and your family plan for your care after you leave the hospital. They can provide you with information about community services, rehabilitation services and extended care facilities, and help you plan for any special financial needs.

If your physician requests follow-up care for you in your home, the clinical resource coordinator will establish a discharge plan and will coordinate the information with a community service organization that you select. The agency staff will phone you at home to establish a time for your first visit.

Comments About Your Care
A few days after you have been discharged, a survey will be sent to your home address to assess your experience at Rush. Your feedback is extremely important to us, so please take a few moments to fill out the questionnaire. Patient responses help us with our ongoing improvements to patient care. If you do not receive a survey, call (312) 942-5574.