Surgery Handbook for Patient & Family 5900 Bond Ave. Centreville, IL 618.332.3060
Table of Contents Physician Instructions...1 Pre-Test Instructions...1 Contact Surgery Nurse...2 Transportation Assistance...3 Cancelling / Rescheduling... 4 Day of Surgery... 4 Personal Belongings / Meds...5 Admitting / Registration...5 Family Waiting...6 Patient Discharge...6 You can learn more about Touchette Regional Hospital on our website. www.touchette.org
Your Surgery Information Physician: Office Phone: Physician Exchg: Date of Surgery: Time of Arrival: Time of Surgery: Approx Total Time: Reminders:
Physician Instructions The physician office will provide each patient with clinical information about the procedure that is being ordered. The physician office will assist in scheduling the procedure and will provide the instructions that should be followed by the patient prior to the procedure including any pre-surgery tests. Pre-Test Instructions It is important to plan to complete your pre-tests prior to the day of the procedure. This allows results to be available promptly for the physician. However, if you are unable to accomplish this prior to the procedure, please plan for additional time the day of the procedure so that this does not cause any delays. Outpatient Registration is available to assist all patients Monday through Friday during the hours of 6:30am to 5:00pm. However, on off hours or on weeks patients may present in ER Admitting for registration assistance. Also, if you present for pre-tests during the hours of 8:00am and 2:00pm, Outpatient registration can coordinate a personal consultation with the Surgery Nurse regarding your scheduled procedure versus having to make phone contact at another time. Page 1
Contact Surgery Nurse It is important that each patient contact the Surgery Nurse prior to any procedure. This is also another opportunity to ask any additional questions. Please contact the Surgery Nurse prior to the procedure at 618-332-5208 any Monday through Friday during the hours of 8:00am to 2:00pm. The Surgery Nurse will review the procedure and discuss any current medications and how to address the medications on day of the procedure plus review any eating and drinking instructions before surgery. In general, it is nothing to eat or drink after midnight before a procedure. Arrival time and procedure time will be discussed. Arriving in enough time to be registered and prep d is important and how long the whole surgery process will take is also important to the patient and family. Any pre-tests will be reviewed and discussed. There is a possibility that even though the physician did not order any pre-tests, the Surgery Nurse may need to order some tests on behalf of the anesthesiologist. It is recommended that pre-tests be completed prior to the day of the procedure. If the Surgery Nurse determines that there has been no contact regarding the procedure, every effort will be made by the Surgery Nurse to contact the patient and/or the responsible party to discuss the procedure. For safety purposes, if you become ill prior to the procedure and need to speak with the Surgery Nurse to determine if the illness will affect the procedure, call 618-332-5208 prior to coming to the hospital. Page 2
Transportation Assistance Touchette Regional Hospital offers a transportation service to and from various locations in and around our designated service area. This service is for patients coming to Touchette Regional Hospital for scheduled services and/or returning home after the services. However, patients receiving outpatient surgery will need to plan for personal transportation after their procedure. Patients cannot be discharged to Hospital Transportation. If the patient pickup location is within one of the cities listed below and transportation assistance is needed on the day of a scheduled service, please advise your physician office: Alorton Belleville Cahokia Caseyville Centreville Collinsville Dupo East Carondelet East St. Louis Fairmont City Fairview Heights Granite City Lovejoy Madison O Fallon Sauget State Park Swansea Venice Washington Park The physician office will fax the appropriate request form to Transportation at 618-332-5430. If you have any questions or if you need to cancel this service, the Transportation department can be contacted directly at 618-332-5430. However, if Transportation needs to be rescheduled, the physician office will have to make the new arrangements. The planning time is important. The request needs to be submitted to Transportation at least three (3) days in advance and the patient needs to plan for one (1) hour of travel time. The Transportation department hours are specifically designed for patient convenience and to ensure that the patient arrives on time for the appointment and returns home as planned. Page 3
Cancelling/Rescheduling If you are needing to cancel or reschedule your procedure, please contact your physician office as soon as possible. The physician office will immediately make arrangements to reschedule the procedure and and provide the patient with a new date and time and also inform the Surgery department. It is important to remember to be sure that you contact the Surgery Nurse before your next scheduled date to reconfirm your instructions and time to arrive. Day of Surgery There is easy patient drop off at the front entrance of the hospital with the parking located at the front of the building. If the patient needs wheelchair assistance, the Operator at the Information Desk will immediately contact Outpatient Registration to assist the patient with a wheelchair. Arrival time should have already been communicated by the Surgery Nurse as well as how long your family will need to plan for the entire process. Page 4
Personal Belongings / Meds Even though personal belongings will be put in a bag and will remain with the patient throughout the Surgery process, leaving valuables at home or with family waiting might be a consideration. If the Surgery Nurse has not obtained information regarding your current medications, it will be very important on the day of the procedure to bring either a current list of medications or the actual medications as well as information when it was the last time consumed. Admitting / Registration Outpatient Registration is open for receiving patients Monday through Friday beginning at 6:30am. The staff will be asking for some form of personal identification and the patient insurance information at that time. If the patient is a minor, the staff will be asking for some form of parental identification or responsible party identification. Also, if the patient is responsible for any co-payments for the procedure, Outpatient Registration will handle the transaction as part of the registration process. Payment is required prior to receiving the scheduled procedure and form of payment should be cash, cashier check or credit card or debit card. As soon as the registration is completed, the patient will be escorted to the Surgery prep location. Family can remain with the patient during the prep. When the patient is transported to Surgery, the family will be asked to return to the Outpatient Registration waiting room to wait for notification that the patient is in recovery. Page 5
Family Waiting At any time, the family can ask the staff in Outpatient Registration to inquire on the status of their family member. If the doctor or the surgery staff needs the family, they will call to the Outpatient Registration staff with those instructions. If the family would like to go to our cafeteria for refreshments or would need to leave for a period of time, they can advise the Outpatient Registration staff. They will be glad to relay any information necessary. Cafeteria Hours (Basement Level) Breakfast 7:00a to 9:00a Lunch 11:00a to 1:30p Dinner Break 4:00p to 6:30p Gift Shop Hours (Main Lobby) Mon-Friday 9:00a to 5:30p Patient Discharge When the patient is ready to go home, a nurse will review the discharge instructions with the patient and/or the responsible party and answer any questions. However, if there are questions afterwards about the surgery or recovery, please contact your physician and/or contact the Surgery Nurse at 618-332-5208. Page 6
Outpatient Registration Information Desk Seniors I.Q. Gift Shop Restrooms Transportation Department Main Elevators Surg Consult Room Main Entrance Outpatient Registration & Customer Service Outpatient Waiting Room
Wishing you a quick recovery! If you have any questions about your surgery or recovery, please contact your physician and/or contact the Surgery Nurse at 618.332.5208
Thank you for choosing Touchette Regional Hospital