Ask questions or request help during a hospital stay

Ask questions or request help during a hospital stay

During a hospital stay at Alchemilla Hospital or Brookhaven Hospital, you and your approved caregivers can ask questions, raise concerns, and request help from the care team. Use the nurse call button, bedside phone, or in-person rounding time when you need help with pain, medications, personal care, safety, discharge planning, or understanding the next step in your treatment.

If you are still learning who is involved in your care, review what to expect if you are admitted to the hospital. Your care team may include nurses, hospitalists, specialists, pharmacists, therapists, case managers, social workers, behavioral health staff, and discharge planners.

Using the nurse call button

Each inpatient room has a nurse call button, call cord, or bedside control that alerts nursing staff. Use it whenever you need help and cannot safely wait for the next routine check. Nursing staff would rather respond early than have you fall, miss a medication concern, or wait too long to report a change.

• Press the call button for bathroom help, pain, nausea, dizziness, alarms, IV concerns, medication questions, or mobility assistance.
• Be specific when staff answer, such as “I feel dizzy,” “My pain is worse,” or “I need help getting to the restroom.”
• Do not get up alone if staff told you to call first, if you are attached to monitoring, or if you feel weak or unsteady.
• For sudden severe symptoms, press the call button and call out for help immediately.

Rounds and communicating with your care team

Rounds are regular check-ins where nurses, hospitalists, specialists, therapists, or behavioral health staff review your condition and care plan. Rounds are a good time to ask what changed, what the team is waiting for, and what must happen before discharge or transfer.

If follow-up testing is discussed during rounds, you may later need to use lab work, imaging, or diagnostic testing scheduling. If a follow-up alert arrives from a department you do not recognize, compare it with your discharge plan and review hospital follow-up appointment notifications.

Reporting concerns or asking questions

Speak up if something feels wrong, unsafe, confusing, or unresolved. Small comfort issues can usually be handled by your nurse or patient care technician. Medical changes, medication side effects, pain, safety issues, and emotional distress should be shared as soon as possible.

• Use the call button or bedside phone if you need help before the next scheduled check.
• Tell staff what changed, when it started, and whether it is getting worse.
• Ask for repeat instructions if you do not understand a medication, test, procedure, or discharge plan.
• Write down staff names, times, and what was discussed if you are trying to track an unresolved concern.
• For Brookhaven-related emotional distress, safety planning, or crisis follow-up, ask your nurse to contact the behavioral health team or social worker.

If your stay connects to Brookhaven care, you may also want to review how to prepare for a Brookhaven behavioral health visit or how to schedule a Brookhaven behavioral health appointment after discharge.

Visitors, family, and support

Family members, caregivers, and support persons can help you remember questions, understand instructions, bring needed items, and plan for discharge. Tell your nurse who you want involved and what information that person may receive.

If your caregiver also needs to help with forms or uploaded documents after discharge, see complete pre-visit forms and upload documents.

Privacy and patient safety

Silent Hill Health protects patient information and limits who can receive updates. You can ask to speak privately with your nurse, provider, case manager, social worker, or behavioral health clinician. You can also request interpreter support, communication assistance, mobility support, or help understanding forms and instructions.

• Tell staff if someone should not receive updates about your care.
• Ask for a quieter or more private conversation if the topic is sensitive.
• Report spills, alarms, broken equipment, unlocked doors, unsafe behavior, or fall risks right away.
• Ask for help before getting out of bed if you feel weak, dizzy, medicated, or attached to equipment.
• Tell staff if you need Brookhaven-related privacy review, safety planning, or a behavioral health support person.

Escalation process

Most concerns should start with the bedside nurse or the staff member closest to the issue. If the concern is not resolved, ask for the next level of help.

If your concern relates to leaving the hospital, follow-up care, or instructions after discharge, ask for the case manager, social worker, or discharge planner before you leave.

Who to contact for common issues

Portal requests during or after a hospital stay

The patient portal can help document non-urgent questions, upload forms, review results, or track follow-up after discharge. It should not replace the call button or in-person request when you need immediate help during a hospital stay.

• Use the portal for non-urgent follow-up questions, document uploads, appointment reminders, or records review.
• Use the call button or nursing desk for symptoms, pain, medication timing, urgent safety issues, or immediate bedside needs.
• Include your visit date, facility, unit, room number if known, and the specific question when sending a portal message.
• After discharge, review what to do after receiving emergency care in Silent Hill if your stay began through Alchemilla emergency care.

For future non-urgent visits, you can also review Alchemilla outpatient visit preparation or planned hospital admission preparation.

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