When you leave

Leaving hospital

Our priority is to help you get better and support you to leave hospital when the time is right. You will only leave hospital when you no longer need hospital care and it’s safe to do so.

Our staff will work with you to start your discharge planning right away to ensure you leave the hospital in a safe and timely manner. We will do all we can to ensure you can be discharged home before lunchtime. This will help improve your hospital stay and experience, aid your recovery once you leave and reduce unnecessary delays. It also helps us accommodate new patients who need to be admitted.

Read the Your Discharge from Hospital patient information leaflet

Planning ahead so that everything is ready when you are well enough to leave hospital

No one wants to be in hospital for longer than they need to be. Home for Lunch is part of our work to ensure you can leave hospital in a timely, comfortable, and well-planned way.

We work hard to ensure everything is ready for when you are well enough to leave and there is lots we can do in advance.

This includes having:

Early conversations: soon after you are admitted to hospital, either through the Emergency Department or via a planned treatment route, we will discuss and plan with you arrangements for when you will be discharged. We will involve your family, carers and or friends in conversations if you wish.

Expected Date of Discharge (EDD): soon after you arrive in hospital you will be given an EDD, the date you are expected to be leaving the hospital. This will be reviewed and discussed with you throughout your hospital stay.

Questions you could ask us during your stay in hospital.

• What is the matter with me?
• What’s going to happen to me today and tomorrow?
• What extra help might I need when I leave hospital?
• When am I going home?

What can family, friends and carers do to help?

• 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.
• Put the heating on if needed.

For patients who maybe concerned about making travel arrangements or settling in at home please raise the matter with a member a staff who will be able to advise and assist

What to expect when you are ready to leave hospital

This leaflet explains why you’re being discharged and what to expect.

Please use the check list below as a prompt, these have been informed by patient queries we have received:

• Have I been told the day/date/time I will be discharged from hospital?
• Do I have suitable outdoor clothing and shoes to wear?
• Do I have my front door keys?
• Will someone be collecting me and or meeting me at home?
• Do I have food at home, can I arrange for someone to get provisions in if required? Please ask if you need help.
• Are my ongoing care arrangements in place?
• Do I have your medication ready to take home and do I understand how I should be taking the new medication? Questions you might want to ask your doctor, pharmacist or nurse related to this include:
  • Why do I need to take this medicine?
  • How do I take it?
  • When should I take it?
  • How long do I need to take it for?
  • Can I take it with food?
  • What are the side effects?
  • Who should I contact if I get side effects?
  • Do I need any monitoring or follow-up?
  • What should I do when it runs out
• What do I do if I am not feeling well, or I have symptoms like the ones that brought me to hospital?
• Have I got everything I came in with?

Welfare phone call when you leave the hospital

Once you have left hospital you may receive a phone call from our team of volunteers asking how you are recovering back at home and if you have any issues or worries related to your stay or discharge.  This is an opportunity for you to raise any issues about your stay and also help us continue to improve the services we provide.

Have your say

The Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital aims to provide high quality services. However, please tell us when something could be improved. If you have a comment or compliment about a service or treatment, please raise your comments with a member of staff or the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) team in the first instance.

Looking after family and friends

This leaflet explains ways you can support family and friends after they’ve left hospital.

Our Physiotherapists have put together a video of some exercises to help you if you’re recovering from Covid-19 to help with your breathing, restoring muscle and pain management.