Chester County Hospital is committed to providing resources that help our community take an active role in managing their health. This information is being provided as an aid to patients and families as they transition throughout their health care journey.
Six Tips to Help You Reduce Your Chances of Being Admitted to the Hospital:
- Understand and follow your prescribed medication plan
- Know your medical conditions and follow a healthy diet to proactively manage them
- Go to all of your scheduled health care provider appointments
- Bring a list of any changes or concerns to your appointments and address them with your physician
- Prevent yourself from falling by understanding the risks that surround you
- Communicate with your health care provider if you aren’t feeling well or if you have pain for more than three days
Before Your Hospital Stay:
- Bring lists of current medications, allergies, medical history and health care providers
- Bring your health insurance information
- Bring the contact information for your support person and emergency contacts
- Bring a copy of your Advance Directive (if you have one)
- When traveling, bring all the above plus any other test results (EKG, labs, etc.) with you to serve as baseline information in the event of an emergency
During Your Hospital Stay:
- Ask for a pen and paper to help you remember your questions
- Ask for clarification about anything you don’t understand
- Ask your health care providers to use easy-to-understand terms when needed
- Ask every day if your patient status is “inpatient” or “observation” as it could impact insurance coverage and post-hospital rehab care (this status is defined and assigned in compliance with Medicare guidelines)
- Ask everyone who enters your hospital room to wash their hands upon entry
- Ask to hear the bed or chair alarms so you won’t be startled
- Listen to case managers/social workers to understand your discharge instructions
- Tell case managers/social workers your preference of where to receive follow-up care
- Identify a trusted support person that health care providers can contact and who will listen to your discharge instructions
- Watch the hospital’s patient education channel and “Preparing for Discharge” videos
After Your Hospital Stay:
- Review your discharge instructions and make note of important contact numbers
- Schedule follow-up appointments outlined in your discharge instructions as soon as possible
- Visit your health care provider within one week of discharge. (It’s okay to be persistent when scheduling follow-up appointments. Tell office staff it is a follow up from your hospital stay.)
- Take discharge instructions to all follow-up health care provider appointments
- If rehab is in your discharge instructions, the facility will get a copy of these instructions and explain the rehab process
- Make follow-up appointments with doctors or home care nurses before leaving the rehab facility
- Call your health care provider with any concerns
- Be honest about how you are feeling and healing during any follow-up calls from your health care provider, insurance company and hospital social worker
- If you are out of the hospital and having a medical emergency, call 9-1-1 and never drive yourself to the hospital
If You Need Extra Help...
- Your pharmacist can review medication instructions and information
- Chester County Hospital’s Community Health and Wellness Services has healthy lifestyle programs. Call 610-738-2300 for information.
- Diabetes Education
- Smoking Cessation
- Weight Management
- Healthy Living
- Pennsylvania Link to Aging and Disability: 1-800-753-8827