What to Do After Hospital Discharge?

by Dr. Menna Alaa, MBBS | Feb 21, 2023 | Patient Safety

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What to do after hospital discharge may be a worrying question to many patients. Each patient has a certain time period to stay at the hospital, which depends on many factors. The main reason for hospital admission is to get closer monitoring and intensive care.

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Doctors run many complex assessments to evaluate their patients’ conditions and help them improve until they are well enough to continue their recovery outside the hospital.

Hospital discharge plan:

Remember! Being at the hospital is an abnormal thing. The hospital is not a cozy, welcoming place, and patients are usually eager to leave it.

The main risk for patients is to be discharged too early, which means their conditions are not well enough to leave the hospital. However, physicians may need to follow the hospital’s policy and updated guidelines before discharging patients to limit any possible risk of earlier discharge.

Each hospital has its discharge policy. However, hospital discharge plans are similar. Usually, your physician will give you a medical report that includes your data, health condition at admission, final diagnosis, the management plan, condition at discharge, and the hospital discharge plan.

This discharge plan may also include:

● Dates of follow-up visits.

● Instructions regarding nutrition, hygiene, and mobility.

● A list of medications.

● Serious symptoms that require reaching the hospital.

● Medical equipment you may need.

● When to call the emergency department

What to do before hospital discharge?

It is better to discuss your condition with physicians and talk about your worries. This will be of great help when you are discharged. Usually, hospital staff will ask you to provide and confirm your data and help you set any required arrangements.

● You need to know who will accompany you from the hospital.

● Plan how you will be transported.

● Prepare a suitable, easy-to-reach, place.

● Ask your physician how you can contact him in case of any problem.

Keep in mind:

Hospital discharge does not mean that you have completely recovered. You still need time to be well. It is wrong to start acting as if you are healthy, and go back to your routine without any planning. Recovery needs patience.