Critical Information-Hospital Discharge

In the event you become ill or need to have a procedure and find yourself in a hospital, chance are the care you will receive will range from good to excellent. You will have doctors and nurses checking on you  throughout the day and If you have a problem when no one is around you will be able to summon a nurse by simply pressing a button. The nurses will have easy access to a doctor and the problems you are having can be quickly dealt with. This level of care however, abruptly ends when you leave the hospital.  The Doctors from the hospital are now gone and can't easily be   reached  and the nurses who took such good care of you at the hospital are no longer available.

**************You are now on your own**************
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Now that you know what to expect here is what to do when you are discharged:
1. Immediately call you primary doctor
and tell him or her you have been discharged from the hospital, and make an appointment to see him immediately. *Do not settle for anything less than an immediate appointment. Your primary Doctor must take over your care. The Doctor(s) in the hospital can not be relied upon to take care of you any longer. Your primary Doctor is the Doctor you now must now rely upon. I can't stress this point enough. After discharge see you must see your Primary Care Doctor ASAP. 
2. Do not under estimate the need for help at home.
You most likely will be going home in a weakened condition. Friends, relatives and home care companies like Home Care Of Myrtle Beach will be needed from the minute you arrive at home. Hospitals today are under a great deal of pressure to release patients as soon as possible, often times before you are feeling ready to begin caring for yourself. You are going to need help.
3. Expect mistakes, question everything.
Every prescription you came home with should go with you when you visit your primary care Doctor. Find out what each medication is for and mark it on the bottle. Ask about the side effects of the medications and the dosage. Also ask your doctor if there are newer medications with fewer side effects available. Remember you are now responsible for caring for yourself. Question everything about your care and if it the answers you are getting don't make sense call your doctor and express your concerns.

We at Home Care of Myrtle Beach watch out for our clients and go out of our way to call attention to problems.  We will call your doctor when we see a problem and voice any concerns you or we may have. Ultimately however you must be your own advocate . Medicine today is completely different than it was 10-years ago and those that do not recognize the differences will have a difficult recovery.