During your stay
Staying in hospital as an inpatient
- Before your stay
- Current page section : During your stay
- Your hospital care team
- Leaving hospital
- Your care after hospital
When you arrive on the hospital ward, we’ll show you around and answer any questions you have.
You'll be given a hospital identity bracelet with your name on it. This allows all staff to quickly identify you. If you have an allergy, this bracelet will be red.
Always keep your identity bracelet on your wrist. This is for your safety.
Medicines
Give all the medicines you've brought in with you to your nurse. They’ll tell you where and how they'll be stored.
Your nursing team usually help you take your medicines while you’re in hospital. If you would prefer to take your medicines yourself, talk to your nurse.
Tell us if you're allergic to any medicines.
It's also important that you tell your doctor and ward pharmacist about any medicines you're taking. This includes:
- prescription medicines
- medicines you buy from a pharmacy or shop
- alternative medicines, such as herbal and homeopathic remedies
Ask your hospital care team any questions about your medicines in hospital.
Daily life on the ward
You usually stay on a ward that specialises in the condition you have. Sometimes, you might stay on a ward with a different specialty. Whichever ward you’re staying on, you’ll be seen by your specialist medical team during their daily ward rounds.
If you need a test or treatment in another part of the hospital, we’ll help you get there.
The following information may vary between wards. Please ask your hospital care team if you have any questions about the ward you’re staying on.
Our wards are made up of separate male and female bays. If you have any questions or concerns about this, talk to your hospital care team.
The toilets and bathrooms near your bay are for the patients in your bay only. You do not need to walk through a different bay to reach your bathroom and toilet.
Eating and drinking well is an important part of your recovery. We want you to benefit as much as possible from the foods that you eat.
Meals
We make all our meals using fresh ingredients in our hospital kitchens. They’re nourishing, appetising and free from additives.
You’ll get:
- breakfast
- lunch
- dinner
- hot and cold drinks
- snacks
Visitors can stay with you if you need their help to eat or drink.
Any tests or treatments you need should take place before or after meals. If you miss a meal, speak to your nurse or food service assistant.
Food options
You can choose your meal from our menu each day. Our menu includes:
- hot and cold items
- vegetarian and vegan options
- halal and kosher options
- a variety of food from around the world
Tell your nursing team or your food service assistant if you have any dietary needs.
Our online allergen portal has allergy and nutrition information about our meals.
Bringing in food
If someone brings in food or drink for you, check with your nurse before eating or drinking it. If you're on a special diet as part of your care, or have been told not to eat or drink (fast) before a procedure, it might not be suitable for you.
We cannot heat food your visitors bring in. There are microwaves in our shops that you can use. Any food your visitors bring in for you must be in a labelled container.
Support with your diet
Talk to a nurse if you:
- have lost weight recently without trying
- feel that you are underweight
- have a poor appetite
We can refer you to one of our dietitians for assessment and advice.
Visitors
We welcome and encourage your family and friends to visit you during your hospital stay. Your ward might have a day room where you can spend time with your visitors. Ask your nursing team about what times people can visit you.
Mobile phones
Mobile phones can affect medical equipment and disturb other patients. You cannot use your phone in some areas of our hospitals. In areas where you can use your phone, keep it on silent mode, use headphones and be considerate of the people around you.
Free video calls
On some wards, we can arrange free video calls using a mobile app called aTouchAway. Ask your nursing team if you’re interested in this.
Bedside phone
Some wards have a bedside unit with a phone provided by SPARK TSL®. You can use it to call UK landlines (numbers beginning with 01, 02, and 03) for free. Calls to mobile (07 and 08) numbers are free for 2 minutes, but you can call back as many times as you like.
If someone calls your bedside telephone, it will cost them 13p per minute, plus any standard network charges.
Go to the SPARK TSL YouTube channel for video guides about how to use the bedside units.
The NHS Wi-Fi network is free for you to use. You can use it to check emails, send text messages and browse the internet.
You should not use it for watching or streaming videos, or making voice and video calls.
Your ward might have a day room where you can watch TV.
Some of our wards also have bedside entertainment units provided by SPARK TSL. These units have TV, radio and phone services.
Go to the SPARK TSL YouTube channel for video guides on how to use the bedside units.
Free entertainment
Your bedside unit includes some free entertainment, such as:
- some TV channels from 6am to midday
- hospital radio
- BBC Radio 1, 2, 3, and 4
- Capital FM
Paid entertainment
Some entertainment services cost money. You need to pay a fee if you want to watch or listen to:
- TV after midday
- TV box sets
- movies
- audio books
- Sky Sports and TNT Sports
Check the prices on your beside unit or call 0345 414 1234 for more information.
You can pay for your entertainment package by:
- using your bedside unit to get an online payment link sent to you by text, email or QR code
- calling 0345 414 1234 and paying by debit or credit card
Customer care team support
If you need help with your bedside unit, call 0345 414 1234 for free, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
If you're calling from your hospital bedside phone, press the Operator button on the phone screen.
There’s a small cupboard next to your bed where you can store a few of your personal belongings. This cupboard is not locked.
If you've brought valuables with you, ask your family or friends to look after them.
If you need to keep your valuables in hospital, ask your nurse to lock them away safely or store them in the cashiers’ office. You can collect them when you leave hospital.
We want you to rest and sleep as well as possible during your stay. Prepare for sleep as you normally do. Make sure you have anything you might need during the night close by.
Ask your nurse for things that can help you sleep, such as pain relief, or extra blankets and pillows.
After 10pm, please try to be quiet. Turn off any sound from your electronic devices or use headphones. Lower the brightness of your screens so they do not disturb other patients.
After 11pm, the main ward lights will be dimmed. If you need help to go to the bathroom, speak to a nurse.
Most wards do not have laundry rooms. Give your personal laundry to your family, friends or carers so they can wash it for you.
Smoking, vaping and e-cigarettes are not allowed anywhere on our hospital grounds. This includes our gardens and outdoor spaces.
Smoking slows down your recovery and increases health risks.
If you would like help giving up smoking, speak to your hospital care team. Our stop smoking service can give you nicotine-replacement therapy to help you during your stay. This might include nictone patches, sprays and lozenges. We’ll also help you to get support even after you leave hospital.
Critical care
If you become seriously ill, or if you've just had surgery, you might move to our critical care unit. This is also known as an intensive care unit (ICU).
It might be noisier in our critical care unit because we use specialist equipment that helps us to monitor you closely. Your daily routine in a critical care unit will be different to your routine in a ward.
Preventing infection
We follow strict guidance to help keep you safe and prevent infection.
We’ll test you for infections while you’re in hospital. If you have an infection, you might need to isolate in a side room. This helps to protect you and other patients. Sometimes we might give you a special body wash to use in the bath or shower during your stay.
It’s important that you help us to keep yourself and other patients safe by following our hygiene guidance.
Decisions about your care
We want to involve you in decisions about your care and treatment. Your hospital care team will talk to you about your options so you can decide what you want to do. Ask us any questions that might help you make your decision.
If you decide you do not want treatment, tell us. Think about sharing this with your family and friends too.
If you want your family or close friends to support you with making a decision, we can arrange for them to be with you when we discuss your options.
It might be a good idea to think about what’s important to you if you become very unwell. Read our information about advance care planning if you’d like to know more.
Spiritual care
Staying in hospital can make you feel worried. If you want someone to talk to, ask a nurse to introduce you to our:
- spiritual healthcare service at Evelina London Children’s Hospital
- spiritual care team at Guy’s and St Thomas’ hospitals
- chaplains at Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals
We have chaplains and volunteers of many different faiths. We can also support you if you have no religious belief.
Some wards have quiet rooms for meditation and prayer. These rooms are open to everyone.
Planning to leave hospital
Our aim is to help you feel well enough so you can get back to living your life. It’s best to start planning early for how you might leave hospital. This is not about rushing you. It’s about making sure that everything is ready when you’re fit enough to leave.
It’s never too early to ask us questions about leaving hospital.
Questions you can ask
- When do you think I can leave hospital?
- Can I have someone with me when we talk about leaving hospital?
- Where can I go if I cannot go home?
- What support will I get after I leave hospital?
- Can my family, friends or carers get support if they need to look after me when I leave hospital?
- What kind of help can I get with cooking, cleaning and shopping?
- How can I claim disability and sickness benefits?
- Will I need a fit note for my employer?