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Getting discharged from hospital Discharge process Home treatment & recovery

Getting Discharged From Hospital

Learn about the process hospitals follow for sending patients home, and how patients are supported in making a home treatment and recovery plan.

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Getting discharged from hospital

Planning for your discharge from the hospital starts well before you actually leave. In fact, we start planning for your return home as soon as you come into the hospital. We regularly meet to review your treatment and recovery. We will work to have you discharged as early in the day as possible.

Some patients need further health care such as community nursing, care at another hospital or rehabilitation services; your health-care team will work with you to help plan your discharge and any additional care that is required. We are here to help you improve your ability to manage your care needs and your transition to home or community to continue your recovery.

Discharge process

Your health-care team will support your discharge needs.

Questions you should ask

Write down any questions you have about what will happen when you get home, what your family can do to help or who is going to pay for your care.

Other questions you might have:

  • When you need to see the doctor again and any follow-up tests
  • How and when to change bandages and dressings
  • What you can and can't eat
  • How active you can be (may include fall precautions and physiotherapy)
  • What to do if you have questions or if there is an emergency
Transportation from the hospital

Part of your discharge plan includes how you will travel from the hospital to your home or community. When you’re discharged, you may need to coordinate your trip home.

For more information about transportation options, visit our Transportation To & From Hospital page.

Home treatment & recovery

Sometimes a stay in the hospital can not be avoided. If this happens, your goal should be to go home as soon as your hospital team confirms that your acute illness is over. Evidence shows that home is the best place to enjoy the highest quality of life, stay active, connect with family and friends, make choices about food and daily activities, avoid risks such as falls or infection, and make important decisions about your future.

You may not feel like your old self right away but that doesn’t mean that you can’t go home. Returning home with proper help gives you the best chance to get stronger and be independent.

Care and services you may need

Services you may need at home can include home support, respite, nursing, physiotherapy, occupational therapy or speech therapy. For more information about services available, visit our Home and Community Care page.

 

 

Equipment you may need

Your team will assess the equipment you need and help coordinate to have it ready when you go home. Some examples of equipment include oxygen, or a mobility device like a walker.

Your medications

Your doctor may write a prescription for medication and a nurse will give you a list of medications and instructions about any other medications you are to take at home.

  • Ask which medications you should continue taking
  • Update your medication list to include new medications, or changes to existing medications
  • Have a health-care professional help you
  • Inform your community pharmacist and family physician about any changes that occurred in the hospital
Determining the best care option for you

Whenever possible, the best place to make life-changing decisions about where you will live is at home during a period of wellness – not in hospital during a health crisis. These are important decisions that you need time to think about.

Family or friends may stay with you at your home, or you may stay with them. You may need to go to another health-care setting, such as a rehabilitation unit or convalescent bed, an assisted living facility, or a long-term care home.

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