Your hospital care team

During your stay, you’ll meet different members of your hospital care team. All our staff are happy to explain their role to you if you ask.

Every day you’ll have a named nurse caring for you. They'll write their name on the 'named nurse board'. We also encourage you to write helpful information on the board.

We always make sure that we have enough staff on duty. We monitor this at all times.

It's important to us that your care and hygiene needs are met. We want to make sure:

• there's no delay if you need help to go to the toilet
• we help you manage any pain you have
• you feel listened to

If there’s anything else we can do for you and your family while you’re with us, ask us.

Talk to the ward sister or the matron if you have any concerns about your care or condition. 

Your care on the ward

Your medical team see you each day to make a daily plan for your care. We want you to feel involved in decisions about your care. Tell us if you:

• need us to explain something more clearly
• need extra help
• are in pain
• feel staff could involve you more in discussions about your care
• have any fears or worries about your care or treatment
• want to get a second opinion about your case or treatment
• want to find out if there are any research studies open to patients, and how you can take part

One of the nurses will be wearing a red armband. This is the nurse in charge for that shift. They're the best person to go to if you have any concerns or are unsure who to ask about something. You can also speak to a ward sister or charge nurse.

If you feel like you're not getting what you need from the ward team, you can ask to speak to the matron.

Meet your team

You'll be cared for by a skilled medical team, led by a consultant (senior doctor).

You can recognise most of our nursing staff by the colour of their uniform. Some healthcare professionals, such as ward pharmacists or dietitians, do not wear uniforms.

All staff wear an identity badge and yellow name badge.

Here are some of the healthcare professionals that you might meet during your stay.

Student health professionals

Our hospitals are teaching hospitals. We might have student health professionals working on the ward under the close supervision of senior staff. If you do not want to be seen by students, tell us. This will not affect the quality of your care in any way.

Other professionals you might see

Our team of housekeepers make sure our hospitals are kept clean.

At times you might see a member of our security team or a police officer on our wards. The security team work hard to keep everyone safe.

We do not tolerate violence or aggression in our hospitals.

Staff shifts

Many of our staff work in shifts. At the end of each shift, staff will hand over information about your progress to the team on the next shift. This is to make sure staff coming on shift have the most up-to-date information about your care and condition.