A guide to your hospital stay - UHSM

A guide to
your hospital stay

Map of hospital site
This
Hospital
operates
a NO
SMOKING
policy in
all of our
buildings
and
grounds
GUIDE TO OUR HOSPITAL

Welcome
Our mission is to...
“Provide top-quality services for patients
through involvement, initiative and
innovation, while committing to develop as
a leading research and teaching centre of
excellence”.

4
WELCOME
You have been provided with this bedside booklet to inform
you about our hospital services. We do hope you find it useful
and easy to read. If you have any difficulty using this booklet
please consult a member of staff who will try and address your
concerns.
University Hospital of South Manchester NHS Foundation Trust
is a large teaching hospital providing a wide range of services to
adults and children at Wythenshawe Hospital and Withington
Community Hospital, and provides around 400,000 patient
attendances every year. The Trust’s clinical
care is rated as excellent by the Healthcare
Commission.
Every single one of our patients is
important and we endeavor to offer
the highest clinical and care standards
for all.
SECURITY
Patients are advised not to keep
any valuables with them whilst in
hospital, please ask a family member
or trusted friend to take them home
for you.
This hospital
operates a NO
SMOKING policy in all
of our buildings and
grounds. If you require
nicotine replacement
therapy during your stay,
please speak to
ward staff.
If this is not possible, you may deposit valuable
items with nursing staff, who will itemise them and return to
you when leaving. Valuable items retained by you (watches,
jewellery, etc) will remain your responsibility and care must be
taken to keep them secure.
HAIRDRESSING SERVICE
The hospital has a mobile on-site hairdresser available most
week-days. If you would like to use this service please ask a
member of ward staff or contact the PALS service. There will be
a charge for this service.

CAR PARKING
If you need to stay in for treatment and have parked your
car in the hospital’s car park you will need to contact
security prior to leaving to make use of discounted parking
arrangements. Visitors making frequent or extended visits will
be entitled to discounted rates. Please contact security to use
the concessionary ticket system or reduced daily rate.
Vehicles and contents are not the responsibility of the Trust.
Security can be contacted at the outpatients and maternity
reception and by telephone on 0161 291 2818.
INTERPRETER SERVICE
The hospital has an interpreter service which is available to
all patients who have communication difficulties of any kind.
Please ask a member of ward staff to contact this service.
A hospital communication book is available for your use on
the ward, please speak to a member of staff to access this.
5
AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOUR
The Trust has a zero tolerance policy to aggression,
violence and verbal abuse and staff at this hospital
will not tolerate any such outbursts.
Police will be called to incidents where staff or other
patients have been abused. Visitors are also expected to
observe this policy in accordance with the Visitor’s Charter
which can be found on all wards.

RESTAURANTS / SHOPS
6
The hospital has several cafes, a restaurant and a main shop.
l Southmoors Restaurant is open daily and serves a variety
of cooked meals and sandwiches. Southmoors is located near
to the chaplaincy office,
l WRVS coffee shop at the main outpatients entrance
serving drinks and snacks,
l League of Friends Tea Bar, ground floor
of the Tower Block, serving drinks and
snacks (all profits go to the hospital),
l Tempo Café located at the main entrance, serving
drinks and snacks,
l The hospital has a shop which sells a variety of
goods including newspapers, confectionery
and gifts. The hospital shop is located on the
ground floor close to the main pharmacy,
l The hospital also has several visiting stalls
each day on the ground floor, Tower Block.
CHAPLAINCY TEAM
A cash machine
is situated next
to the League of
Friends Tea
Bar.
The hospital Chaplaincy team is a multi-faith team who visit
the wards regularly and is available 24 hours a day. If you
would like to talk to a chaplain, please ask the ward staff.
Your own priest or minister can also visit you in hospital if you
wish.
The hospital chapel, prayer and quiet rooms are open 24 hours
a day for anyone to use. The hospital also has prayer / quiet
rooms available. There are regular services and the times are
displayed on the wards. Volunteers can take you to the chapel
in a wheelchair if needed. The chaplains have a selection of
holy books that you can borrow during your stay.
Ask a member of staff to arrange this for you.

Your Stay

VISITING TIMES
On most wards the visiting times are between 2pm and 8pm.
However, some wards have restricted visiting times so you
should check with the ward staff concerned.
VISITOR’S CHARTER
A Visitor’s Charter can be found on each ward. All visitors are
expected to act in accordance with this charter, in order to
help make the patients stay as restful as possible.
NEXT OF KIN
The hospital advises that you nominate one person
to act as the representative to receive relevant
information and to make enquiries.
8
LAUNDRY
The hospital will not launder any personal
items of clothing for you. This must be
done by a relative or carer at home. The
hospital will not accept responsibility for the
loss of any items which have been sent to the
hospital laundry.
If you have false
teeth please keep
them in a solid
container as they
may get lost.
CHILDREN AS VISITORS
Children must be supervised at all times due to potential risks
from equipment and infection. Please be conscious of their
behaviour and of disturbing other patients on the ward.
POST
There is a post box in the outpatients department. Cards can be sent
to you in hospital by clearly stating the ward you are on followed by
the hospital address which can be found at the rear of this booklet.

PRIVACY AND DIGNITY
We aim to respect your privacy and dignity at all times and ask
that you respect that of the other patients. Wards are either
single sex or made up of different sex bays with separate washing
facilities. In emergency or assessment areas, it may be necessary
for you to be in a mixed sex area for example in intensive care or
the medical assessment unit.
MOVING TO ANOTHER BED,
WARD OR HOSPITAL
Due to clinical need you may have to be moved. If you are
awaiting discharge you may be moved to the discharge lounge.
The reasons for any move will be clearly explained to you.
LEAVING THE WARD
If you leave the ward on your own accord for any reason you
must inform a member of staff before leaving.
FLOWERS
Please note: some wards will not allow flowers for patients due
to the infection risks. Please check with a member of ward staff
to see if flowers are appropriate for your ward environment.
9
IDENTIFICATION OF
STAFF AND PATIENTS
All staff wear an identity badge that gives their picture,
name and occupation. If you cannot see their name badge
then please ask the member of staff to produce it.
While you are a patient in hospital it will be necessary for you to
wear an identification wrist-band. This states your name, sex, date
of birth, unique record number and the ward you are staying on.
Some bands are different colours and may represent for example,
that you have an allergy to a certain medication. For your safety
your wrist-band will be checked for certain procedures, if you are
not wearing one please consult ward staff.

PATIENT INFORMATION IS CONFIDENTIAL
All patient Information is treated with the utmost
confidentiality. If you feel this confidentiality has been
compromised in any way please let a member of staff know
immediately. If you have concerns about your anonymity
the ward can take measures to protect your identity. Please
discuss this with a member of the ward staff.
INFORMATION ABOUT
YOUR HEALTH
10
Any information we have about you is strictly confidential
and only the healthcare professionals directly involved in your
care will have access to this information. All staff who have
access to your medical notes will keep them confidential at
all times.
l No information will be passed to anyone without your
permission. We suggest you nominate one relative, or friend,
to make enquiries about your progress.
l Most wards keep some of your records at the end of the
bed. Your permission will be sought to keep them there.
The information likely to be kept there is about your current
admission only and may include blood pressure recordings,
food charts, diabetic charts and daily care records. At your
request these can be stored in the ward office.
l You have the right to look at your full medical records. If
you want to do this please ask a member of staff to explain
the procedure.
l Health records used in research or education are
always anonymous (i.e. no names or identifying details are
included); this safeguards the patient’s privacy and maintains
confidentiality.
If you do not want your health records used for
research or education please inform a member of staff.

CONSENT FOR TREATMENT
Before any doctor, nurse or therapist examines or treats you,
they must seek your consent (permission). This could simply
mean following their suggestions, such as a doctor asking to
examine your throat and you showing your consent by opening
your mouth. Sometimes staff will ask you to sign a form,
depending on the seriousness of the examination or treatment
proposed or whether it carries risks as well as benefits. In order
to make a decision, staff will provide you with information about
the treatment or investigation which is being offered to you.
WHO WILL BE INVOLVED IN YOUR CARE?
Many healthcare professionals may be involved in your care
from consultants, doctors and nurses, to pharmacists and
therapists. A more detailed summary follows:
CONSULTANT
Responsible for your medical care whilst in hospital. The
consultant leads a team of doctors who may all discuss your
medical treatment with you. Your consultant will not visit the
ward every day, however you will have access
to other members of the consultant-led
team. If you or your family would like a
meeting with your consultant, please
ask a member of the ward staff who
will arrange this for you.
NURSES
Experienced ward sisters or charge
nurses are responsible for running the
ward you are staying on; they are known as
You should
always ask
questions if you
don’t understand
or if you want
more
information.
ward managers. A team of nurses will care for you while you are
in hospital, however one nurse will have the responsibility for
planning and co-ordinating your care. This is your named nurse.
The matron will have the overall responsibility for several wards
or areas. They welcome comments on the care you are receiving
and would be happy to deal with any concerns you may have.
11

STUDENT NURSES AND DOCTORS
As a teaching hospital, procedures may be If you are
carried out under supervision by student pregnant, or
doctors, nurses and other healthcare
think you may be
professionals as part of a recognised
pregnant, please
let a member of
teaching / development programme. You
staff know.
do not have to take part in teaching if you
do not want to and your treatment will not be
affected in any way. If you do not want to take part
in helping to teach students and
other staff, please tell your nurse or doctor on arrival.
INFECTION CONTROL
12
All of the staff at this Trust are committed to reducing the
risk of you getting an infection during your stay. You should
expect:
l to see all staff cleaning their hands. If you do not see this
do not be afraid to ask.
l the ward environment, furniture, nursing and medical
equipment will be clean at all times. If this is not the case the
ward manager or housekeeper should be informed.
Visitors can also help by:
l using alcohol hand rub, found at the entrance to all
wards.
l making your bedside areas as clutter free as
possible to assist with cleaning.
l not visiting for 48 hours
if they have had an
episode of diarrhoea or
vomiting.
l avoiding sitting on
your bed during visiting
times.
IT’S OK
TO ASK . . .
if our staff have
cleaned their
hands!

Meals

MEAL TIMES
Sodexho, our catering service provider, has Patient Service
Assistants (PSA) who cook and present your meals and
provide you with drinks.
On most wards meals are served for you to eat at the
bedside.
If you need any assistance please do not hesitate to ask
the member of staff serving your meal. Tea, coffee and
cold drinks are served during the day.
MEAL TIMES
Breakfast:
0800 to 0845
Lunch:
1200 to 1245
Tea:
1700 to 1800
15
PROTECTED MEAL TIMES
Some wards operate ‘Protected meal times’ this has been
introduced to cut down on activity over meal times so
that you can enjoy your meal in a calmer
environment.

ABOUT THE MEALS
We will provide you with a well-balanced nutritional diet
with a choice of dishes both hot and cold which account for
a variety of food tastes. Orders for kosher, halal, and vegan
dishes can also be prepared for you.
Certain illnesses need a special diet and we call this a
therapeutic diet. If you require this it will be arranged
through the hospital dietician. If you have any special dietary
requirements please let us know as soon as possible.
Snack boxes — if you are away from your ward having a
procedure or test done and you miss your meal then
the staff will order you a snack box as an alternative.
FOOD ALLERGIES
16
It is important that you tell the
ward staff if you have any food
allergies.
BRINGING IN YOUR OWN
FOOD
We strongly advise against bringing food into
the hospital as it is difficult to ensure safety of products not
provided by the caterers on site.
Certain foods present a higher risk of food contamination
than others.
For safety reasons, you must not bring in eggs, raw meat or
food which requires reheating.

Leaving

DISCHARGE HOME
As there is a very high demand for in-patient beds, as soon
as you have been assessed as being medically stable you
will be discharged. If there is a short delay in your discharge
you may be asked to vacate your bed early and wait in
the discharge lounge. If you are discharged home, or to a
nursing home there may be several things for the hospital to
arrange and several staff may be involved in this process (see
support services). If your discharge is straight forward you
will need to:
l arrange transport home unless the hospital says that
you will need an ambulance,
l ask any questions you need about your care or follow
up care,
l remember to collect any valuables that have been
stored in the hospital safe,
l take home any personal property you have had during
your stay,
l take home any drugs or medications that you have been
prescribed.
19
SUPPORT SERVICES
You may need some rehabilitation or extra help after your
discharge. If so, this will be arranged by a discharge
co-ordinator, ward staff or multi-disciplinary care team.
This team may involve Social Services for your social
care needs, district nurses for any wounds or dressings,
occupational therapy for help with day-to-day living,
physiotherapy for help with mobility and movement, the
dieticians or the dementia care nurse.
Any extra involvement from other health care professionals
will be explained to you before your discharge from the
ward.

MEDICINES
If you are prescribed medication to take with you we will
give you one-week’s supply. If it is necessary for you to
continue your treatment you will need to contact your GP
for a repeat prescription. You may be charged for some
medications, however, this will be brought to your attention
at your pre-op visit.
TRANSPORT HOME
20
We will expect you to arrange transport home.
If you are in receipt of income support, family credit or
disability working allowance you will be able to claim a
refund for fares to and from the hospital. You can collect a
DSS H11 ‘help with travel costs’ leaflet from your local DSS
office. Remember to keep all receipts for fares.
SICK NOTES / CLAIM FORMS
Please speak to a member of ward staff about this; they will
be able to arrange sick notes and the signing of claim forms.
You may be charged for this, the ward will provide you with
more information.
FOLLOW-UP APPOINTMENTS
If you require a follow-up appointment this
will normally be organised before you
leave the ward, alternatively you may
receive this information in the post
soon afterwards.

Comments

Our hospital welcomes your comments both good and
bad. There are several ways you can make a comment
or complaint about any aspect of your visit.
COMMENTS BOOK / CARDS
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Some wards have comment books that you can write in.
Alternatively you can speak to your nurse or ward manager
directly or send in a letter or a card.
The Trust would like to deal with any of your
concerns positively and use them to
improve our service.
It helps if people make complaints
as quickly as possible, preferably at
the time of the incident so that we
can try and resolve the issue for
you there and then.
If you do raise a
concern or register a
complaint it will not affect
your current or future care
in any way, complaints
cases are registered
separately from any
medical records.
You may wish to speak to the
staff or department concerned
directly or you may wish to discuss
your concern with someone who is
not directly involved. To do this you may
contact the Patient Advice and Liaison Service
(PALS) or our Complaints and Legal Services Department, the
details can be found below.
PATIENT ADVICE AND LIAISON SERVICE
(PALS)
You can speak to the PALS team who are available to visit
you on the ward during office hours. Alternatively, you can
visit the PALS office which is situated on the ground floor
next to the main outpatients entrance.

PALS will be happy to try and resolve any concerns or issues
you may have about the service and will seek to give you a
prompt response.
The PALS service is confidential and can be accessed by
patients, carers or relatives. PALS can be contacted on
0161 291 6611 or please ask any member of staff who
will be happy to access this service for you.
COMPLAINTS & LEGAL SERVICES
If you wish to make a complaint to this Trust or if you have a
legal query, please contact the Complaints and Legal Services
department via the main switchboard. Any complaints letters
can be addressed to the Chief Executive or the Complaints
Co-ordinator at:
Complaints and Legal Services Department
3rd Floor Tower Block
Wythenshawe Hospital
Southmoor Road
Wythenshawe
Manchester
M23 9LT
23
Or you can contact independent agencies, via the complaints
and legal services team, if you would
like more independent advice or
are not happy with the hospital’s
investigations.

GETTING INVOLVED
WITH YOUR HOSPITAL
24
l
Volunteering
The hospital has an active
volunteer team who provide
invaluable service and support for
the whole hospital.
If you would like to get involved as a
volunteer there are a variety of different roles you can
undertake. For more information please contact the
volunteer office via the hospital switchboard, or ask a
member of staff for more details.
l
Fundraising and Income Generation
The fundraising and income generation department
processes all donations made to the Trust and offers to
support individuals and organisations that undertake
fundraising events.
All donations made to the Trust are used to improve the
facilities and care provided to our patients. All donations
are gratefully received. Please ask ward staff for more
details.
l
Foundation Trust Membership
All patients of the Trust are eligible to become ‘Members’
of our Foundation Trust. This means that you will be kept
up-to-date on developments within the Trust, consulted
on major changes to services and invited to get more
involved with the hospital.
If you would like to become a Member, please call free
on 0800 013 2038 or ask your ward manager for a
membership form.