When am I going home?

Last updated: Tuesday 17 September 2024

Why home is best

Hospital stays are designed to provide specific and, usually, intense care. We all know that it’s much better for a patient’s physical and mental wellbeing to leave hospital as soon as they are medically ready to do so. Patients who stay in hospital longer than is necessary may face associated risks such as infections and the loss of independence and mobility. Staying in hospital for too long may even slow down recovery. Research shows:

  • 35 per cent of 70-year-old patients experience a decline in their physical condition during hospital admission. For those over 90, this increases to 65 per cent
  • in patients over 80 years of age, 10 days in hospital leads to 10 years’ worth of lost muscle mass

That’s why we are working to reduce prolonged hospital stays and help our patients continue their recovery at home. For those that can’t go straight home we will support them in their next steps. 

We want to encourage more patients in hospital to ask ‘When am I going home?’ This approach is designed to empower and encourage patients and their families and carers to feel confident in asking questions about their care and recovery beyond the hospital setting.

We recognise it can sometimes be hard for patients to ask questions about where their care is up to, especially if they’re unsure about their illness or they can see staff are busy, but asking questions can help patients feel more in control of their recovery.

We are encouraging patients to ask these four questions so they understand everything they need to know about their care and recovery plan:

  • What is wrong with me?
  • What is going to happen next?
  • What can I do to help myself get better?
  • When am I likely to go home?

What you can do to help

When patients are ready to go home from hospital (sometimes referred to as hospital discharge or transfer of care), family, friends and carers can really help patients leave hospital as soon as they are medically ready. They can: 

  • make arrangements to be available at the time of discharge
  • make the home comfortable for the patient’s return
  • arrange help around the home
  • arrange transport and clothes to leave hospital in
  • put the heating on if needed
  • stock the patient's home with basic food and any medicine they might need
  • arrange any support the patient may need including emotional support, help with housework, assistance with getting essential items or personal support with washing, eating or getting dressed. Check what your council or local authority can offer by visiting www.gov.uk/find-local-council

Remember we won’t send patients home before they are medically well enough or plan anything without involving patients, or their family or carers.

If you have any questions or don’t understand any details about leaving hospital, please speak to the staff on the ward.

More information is available in the following leaflets:

Discharge

When you are discharged, please make sure you have all your belongings with you and you have your medications. Please ask a member of staff if you are unsure about anything prior to your discharge. We will be happy to help you.

If you find you have any questions after you leave hospital you can:

  • call the ward you have been on for any general advice. The main hospital switchboard number is 01925 635911
  • call our Pharmacy Medicines Hotline on 01925 662238 if you have any queries about your medication - this service is manned Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm
  • contact your GP if you have any questions on follow up care in the community
Information you will receive when you leave hospital

When you are discharged from hospital you will receive information from different health professionals regarding:

  • medications - the pharmacist and the nurses will go through all your medications before or at the time of your discharge. This will include the purpose of your medications, what side effects there might be and how to take them
  • who to contact if you have concerns after discharge - this may be your GP, the district nurse, or you may require immediate attention
  • what to look out for following discharge - this will include any or danger signals that we can alert you to so that you can seek further advice from your GP
  • hospital equipment - you may receive equipment that you will need when you are home and this will be discussed with you by members of the team e.g. an occupational therapist, Respiratory Team, or physiotherapist
  • discharge letter and form - you will also receive a discharge letter indicating what medications you are being discharged on and further information about why you have been in hospital. This letter also goes directly to your GP to inform them of this admission to hospital. You will also receive a discharge form which is for you to keep safe and contains discharge information that you will have discussed with the nurse/staff member discharging you.
Discharge out of hours

Wherever possible we will aim to discharge you from hospital in a timely manner. Late discharges from our wards may occur, however, for a number of reasons. It might be you are waiting for a final review from a senior doctor, you may be waiting for transport, or you may be waiting for medications. We will endeavour to expedite your discharge as quickly as possible but if you are discharged from hospital late into the evening, this will be discussed with you and should only occur if it is safe to do so.

If you are in one of our assessment units such as the Emergency Department, the Clinical Decisions Unit or the assessment area of the Acute Medical Unit, you may be discharged during the night once assessment and monitoring, or a review by a doctor, shows you are able to return home and do not need to be admitted to the main hospital wards. As always we will only discharge you if it is safe to do so.

Going home and transport

The hospital works with the North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) to provide patient transport services for patients who are eligible for those services. However, we are unable to provide transport for all patients when being discharged from hospital.

Wherever possible we would ask that relatives and friends come and collect you and take you home. There will be times when this is not possible and we do understand and want to help at these times.

Out of hours, when ambulances are needed to take patients who have been in A&E or an assessment unit, please be aware that you could be waiting for the ambulance to take you home for some time as we depend on the emergency ambulance service at these times. We work closely with NWAS to do this as quickly as possible, but we cannot book a definite set time for out of hours ambulance transport due to other unpredictable pressures on ambulances.

Discharge Suite - Warrington

Patients will, where possible, leave Warrington Hospital via our Discharge Suite, a comfortable, supported environment for patients to commence their onward journey home or to their next care setting.

The Discharge Suite is adjacent to the new Frailty Assessment Unit in Appleton Wing and has easy access for vehicle to pick-up (please note there is a 20-minute wait only, otherwise use car park 1).

As soon as patients are identified as being able to be discharged they are booked into the suite and, if mobile, will be able to stay within the seated area which includes Wi-Fi, TV, hot and cold drinks, sandwiches, books, magazines and games. There they can await transport, collection by family/carers or friends and their take-home medications. 

The suite has a dedicated clinical team and is equipped with comfortable chairs, recliners and high-backed chairs. There are four bed/trolley bays for patients whose acute care is complete but may require further supported care in intermediate care or the community. 

The suite is open seven days per week from 8am to 9pm weekdays and 10am to 7pm at weekends.

Further support for when you leave hospital - British Red Cross

The British Red Cross has services based at Warrington and Halton Hospitals and gives practical help to people in the first few weeks after discharge from hospital or after an illness.

Staff and volunteers visit people in their own homes to help them regain their confidence and get back to normal life. Support they can provide can range form help with shopping, collecting prescriptions, safe and well checks and much more. They can also offer support to carers who may need a few hours break.

Warrington Hospital Red Cross service

If you want to contact the Warrington team you can call directly on 01925 662688, Monday to Friday during office hours.

You can also email dtarpey@redcross.org.uk 

Halton Hospital Red Cross service

If you want to contact the Halton team you can call directly on 0151 424 7873.

You can also email JoanCarter@redcross.org.uk