During your stay

From mealtimes to safety precautions, coming into hospital can sometimes be daunting and there is a lot you may want to know. Find out what you can expect

In this section you can find information on:

 

Your care

A consultant will lead your care, with their team of doctors or surgeons. Your care may also need input from specialist clinicians working in other teams. The ward manager or the nurse or doctor looking after you can answer any questions you may have or direct you to the right person. Speak to a member of staff if you have medicine you take regularly and need to bring onto the ward, or if you have any specific needs. They are there to help you with your recovery and will support you in any way that they can. 

 

Our clinical teams

Each ward has a manager who oversees the clinical teams working in the unit. Our staff work as part of ‘multidisciplinary teams’, these are teams of people from different areas of medicine. 

 

This could include nurses, midwives, doctors, surgeons, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech and language therapists, dietitians, healthcare assistants, pharmacists, radiographers, trainees, students and many others. 

 

You should expect your ward staff to introduce themselves. The team will include:

 

  • your named nurse — the nurse responsible for your care on a specific shift
  • a ward manager — a sister or charge nurse or, sometimes, a matron
  • healthcare assistants
  • a ward host – a non-clinical member of staff who is responsible for the distribution of menus, food and drinks. 

There are four key questions that we need to make sure you always have the answers to:


1. why am I in hospital?

2. what’s happening today? (For example, ‘I’m having a scan’ or ‘I’m going to be reviewed by an occupational therapist’)
3. when am I leaving hospital?
4. what needs to happen before I can leave hospital?


If you don’t know the answer to any of these questions, please ask a doctor at the ward round or a nurse on your ward. The care plan for each patient is reviewed daily by a multidisciplinary team. They review your treatment and progress and make decisions about your care to help your recovery and get you home. 

 

When you no longer need acute or specialist treatment, you are considered to be ‘medically fit’ and you are ready to leave hospital; this is known as being ‘discharged’. You may still need considerable rehabilitation or daily support, but this will generally be better provided at home or in a community hospital, nursing or care home. When you’re admitted to hospital, you’ll be given an ‘anticipated date of discharge’, the date you’ll likely be able to leave hospital. This will be reviewed daily.

 

Eating and drinking

Eating well and drinking enough will help you stay as well as possible and to feel better more quickly. Please tell the ward staff if you are ever hungry or thirsty. You will be given a wipe for your hands with every meal, or please wash your hands if you’d prefer. If you need help getting to the bathroom to wash your hands before eating, please let us know.

 

Food choices

Medications may change the taste of food or make you feel nauseated (sick), or you may find it difficult to swallow. If you don’t have much of an appetite, try eating little and often and, if you miss a meal, we will order a replacement for you. Our standard menu has a range of choices, including at least one vegetarian option. You should have a menu at your bedside and, each morning, the ward host will ask you which meals you would like for the next meal. 

 

You can also ask for special menus: 

 

  • for cultural needs, such as halal or kosher
  • for specific dietary needs, such as gluten aware 

The ward host can also help answer any questions about the menu. Your health condition or treatment may also affect what you can eat and drink. One of the multidisciplinary team members will explain to you what you can and can’t eat/drink and why. One of our dietitians may also come to talk to you about your diet in hospital and when you are home.

 

Drinks and snacks

A range of drinks and snacks are available between meals and before bed. Drinks include hot drinks such as tea and coffee, and cold drinks such as milk and squash. Snacks include biscuits, cakes, fresh fruit, cheese, crackers and yoghurt. If you are not eating and drinking much, nursing staff can make build-up milkshakes and soups (called Meritene®) for you. 

 

Hydration

We will ensure that you always have fresh drinking water at your bedside. If you run out of water, please ask the ward host or your nurse for more. We will offer you seven hot drinks as well as cold drinks throughout the day. If you need more, please ask. 

 

Help with eating and drinking

We will give you notice that mealtime service is beginning in case there’s anything you need to do before your meal. Please let a member of staff know if you need help with going to the bathroom. We can also help you with your meal, for example, by opening any packaging and supporting you to eat. We use red trays to let staff know if someone needs help with eating or that the amount of food they eat needs to be recorded. You can ask for a red tray or for help with eating at any time. If possible, try to sit out of bed and in a chair for all your meals as this helps improve digestion. Please tell us if you need help getting out of bed. Please let us know if you usually receive help from a carer at mealtimes, so we can help you with your meals.

 

Smoking and alcohol

Smoking is not permitted at any of our hospitals or in the grounds. Alcohol is not permitted at any of our hospitals. If a patient is found with alcohol or illegal drugs, we reserve the right to withhold treatment. For illegal drugs we will also immediately inform the police.

 

Staying active

Getting up and moving is important. It helps maintain muscle strength and fitness, and for you to remain as independent as possible. It also helps with your breathing by allowing you to use more of your lung capacity. If you feel strong enough, and you’re medically able, you should try to stand up and walk. Speak to a member of staff if you need help or aren’t sure what it’s OK for you to do. 

 

If you do not feel strong enough to walk, lots of patients find it useful to do exercises in your chair or bed – even five minutes a day can make a difference. If you would like more information on the chair or bed exercises, breathing exercises, or permission to walk around the ward, speak to a nurse.

 

We are here to help get you moving safely and doing the things you usually do. We will do this by:

 

  1. looking at what you were able to do before you came into hospital to make sure we understand how best to support and encourage you to keep moving. This includes assessing your risk of falling to ensure prevention plans are put in place

  1. completing a full assessment with you so that we know how you normally get about

  1. reviewing if there is anything that might stop you from being able to get out of bed

  1. providing you with walking aids where necessary.

 

Simple ways to stay active

There are some simple things that you can do to help you be as active as possible during your stay:

 

  • if you feel able to, try to do the things you usually do at home, such as bathing
  • if you need glasses or hearing aids, make sure you know where they are and if you don’t, speak to your ward team
  • if possible, do simple leg and ankle exercises – you can do these from your bed or chair
  • if possible, sit out of bed for meals
  • if possible, walk around the ward when safe to do so or to use the bathroom and toilet. Use your usual walking aids or let us know if you need help
  • keep changing your position even if you are in a bed or chair. 

 

Getting a good night’s sleep

Sleep and rest help your healing and recovery. Being in hospital can make sleeping difficult because of different noises and interruptions disturbing you at night.

Reducing noise and light at night

We will make sure we play our part at night by lowering the ward lights and limiting unwanted sounds such as telephones and monitor alarms, talking quietly and only disturbing you if it’s necessary. To reduce noise on the ward during the night, we also ask you to please:

 

  • talk quietly and be mindful of others who are trying to sleep
  • switch your mobile phone to silent
  • make or receive any calls away from the bedside if possible, or speak quietly
  • use headphones if you’re listening to music or watching a film
  • use the call bell if you need to speak to staff, for example, for help going to the toilet or to get something from your locker. 

 

Encouraging sleep

There are some simple things you can do to make sure you get a good night’s sleep:

 

  • avoid drinks that contain caffeine — caffeine is a stimulant so will be more likely to keep you awake; we have decaffeinated coffee, Horlicks® and hot chocolate available; milky drinks also help with sleep and relaxation
  • use the toilet before you settle down for the night
  • make sure you are comfortable – ask for help if you need it or, if you’re cold, ask for an extra blanket. Also, please let us know if you are in pain so we can let you know your options for pain relief.
  • Some patients find it useful to relax before going to sleep. For example, doing some deep breathing and listening to your breath, listening to soothing music or white noise, reading a book that you find relaxing. If you can’t get your mind off your worries, it could help to make a list of these and identify how you can address them. For example, you can ask your doctor about a symptom or speak to a friend or family member. Tell yourself you will do this the following day. Even just writing it down can be really helpful for some people. Please talk to us if you have any worries or concerns that are keeping you awake. If you need more support, we can arrange it for you so please don’t be afraid to ask.

 

Spiritual support

We have a team of chaplains, and multi-faith representatives who can provide you with spiritual, emotional and pastoral support and advice.

 

Looking after your emotional wellbeing

Serious illnesses can be distressing for patients and for their friends and relatives. Understanding the normal responses to a stressful experience could help make sense of what you are going through. This may be during the illness or in the days, weeks or even months after.

 

Some of the normal physical and emotional responses might include:

 

  • feeling vulnerable, emotional, or on edge
  • intrusive thoughts or flashbacks
  • disrupted sleep
  • avoiding things that you previously enjoyed
  • loss of appetite or ‘comfort eating’
  • headaches or muscular tension.

While we each manage things in our own way, there are some things that most people will find helpful:

 

  1. talk about what has happened – you are less likely to experience lasting effects if you can talk about what has happened. If you don’t feel like you have a friend or family member you could talk to, there are phonelines and listening services listed below.

  • Samaritans. To talk about anything that is upsetting, you can contact Samaritans 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. You can call 116 123 (free from any phone). You can also call the Samaritans Welsh Language Line on 0808 164 0123 (7pm–11pm every day).

  • SANEline. If you're experiencing a mental health problem or supporting someone else, you can call SANEline on 0300 304 7000 (4.30pm–10.30pm every day).

  • Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM). You can call the CALM on 0800 58 58 58 (5pm–midnight every day) if you are struggling and need to talk. 

  • Shout. If you would prefer not to talk but want some mental health support, you could text SHOUT to 85258. Shout offers a confidential 24/7 text service providing support if you are in crisis and need immediate help.

  • For tips on supporting mental well-being as well as links to NHS approved sites, visit Every Mind Matters via: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou

  1. spend time with people you trust – please see the guidance on visitors below or ask us.

  1. be gentle with yourself – it can take time to recover and adjust

  1. take care of yourself – scientific research has shown the impact that some simple things can have on improving your mental health. Try to get enough sleep and eat well, and avoid drugs and alcohol, they can numb feelings but may prevent you coming to terms with what has happened.

 

Being moved to another hospital or ward

Some specialist services are only available at one of our hospitals and so, if you need that specialist care, you may need to be transferred from one of our five hospitals to another one. 

We are also using our hospitals as flexibly as possible to cope with the additional demand we have. You may be moved to a different ward, sometimes at a different hospital, if your needs change or where we have more beds available.

 

Keeping in touch

We can help you stay in touch with relatives if you're unable to, please ask a member of staff.

 

Visitors

We recognise the valuable contribution that visiting makes to the care and wellbeing of our patients. That’s why we are pleased to return to our pre-pandemic approach to visiting. We may need to restrict visiting again, for example if there’s a Covid-19 or norovirus outbreak. 

 

In keeping with our pre-pandemic approach to visiting, we ask that visitors keep the following in mind:

 

  • if you feel unwell – particularly if you have symptoms of Covid-19 – please do not come to hospital
  • we may need to restrict visiting in certain areas from time to time to help prevent the spread of infections or illnesses and we appreciate your understanding in these circumstances 

People staying overnight on one of our wards can have up to two visitors at their bedside at any one time during visiting hours and a visit does not need to be booked in advance. Please make sure you check ward visiting hours before travelling to hospital.

Visiting someone who is at the end of their life

When patients are at the end of their life, it is important to have loved ones around them. In addition to the usual two visitors allowed at the patient’s bedside, the ward team can support additional visitors for a patient at the end of their life. Speak to the nurse in charge on the ward for more information.

 

Personal items drop off

Your family and/or friends can drop off personal items to help make your stay in hospital more comfortable. Items or packages should be clearly labelled with your name and ward and can be dropped off at the following times: Monday through Friday, 11.00 to 13.00. 

 

There are three drop-off points across our three main hospital sites, as follows:

 

  • Charing Cross Hospital at the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) office in the main entrance lobby on the ground floor
  • Hammersmith Hospital at the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) office in the south corridor of B block
  • St Mary’s Hospital at the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) office on the ground floor of the Queen Elizabeth Queen Mother (QEQM) building

    We also have a selection of food, drink and home comforts available to buy online for delivery to you on the ward. Speak to your ward staff about how to do this.

 

Letters from family and friends

Our patient experience team is accepting messages for patients. Your friends and family are welcome to email letters to imperial.patient.experience@nhs.net – they should clearly label emails with the patient's name and ward. The front of house team will get the messages to the wards. This service operates Monday to Friday between the hours of 9.00 and 16.30. Please note that the mailbox is closed during bank holidays.

Virtual visiting

To make it easier for patients to keep in touch with family and friends, we currently provide a premium NHS Wi-Fi service to allow for video calls and entertainment streaming services free of charge. This has been funded by our dedicated charity, Imperial Health Charity. To connect to the network, search for ‘NHS Wi-Fi’ on your mobile phone or laptop device and sign up.

 

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