Going Home from the Hospital

If you were admitted to the hospital after your surgery, you will be discharged when you no longer need the services of an acute care hospital. Usually, this happens when have recovered properly from your surgery and can care for yourself at home or with the help of a support person. Your doctor, nurse, and specialists from the Care Management team will help you with this transition home.

Different types of discharge include:

  • If you are independent and need no additional help, or minimal help that your family and loved ones can provide, you will be discharged to your home. Most patients go home after their stay in the hospital.
  • If you need medical assistance at home, a Care Manager will arrange services and any necessary medical equipment. If you know that you will need extra help to go home, be sure to discuss this with the POSH team member during your pre-surgical phone call or telehealth visit. They can help get these services set up before you even go in for your surgery, so everything is prepared for you when you are ready to discharge home!
  • If you require extra help with your recovery before going home from the hospital, you may discharge to a skilled nursing facility or an acute rehabilitation setting. A person from the Care Management team will work with you and your family to make this transition if needed.

Good discharge planning is important!

Knowing how to care for yourself after discharge improves your recovery. It also decreases the chance that you will be re-admitted to the hospital for a surgery-related complication.

Please review the following links before your surgery, to prepare to care for yourself at home:

Caring for your incision
Preventing surgical site infection
When to call the doctor

It is important to remember that the instructions above are guidelines that apply to any surgery. Your surgeon will let you know if they have more specific instructions they want you to follow after surgery.