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Staying at Oakville-Trafalgar Memorial Hospital
When you were admitted to the hospital, you or your family were probably asked a
number of questions. We confirmed your name and address, your health card
number, supplemental health insurance coverage, allergies and special dietary
needs. You now have a hospital identification bracelet that includes important
information. This band will be checked often during your stay.
Any charges you incur during your stay such as telephone, television or any
accommodations that are not covered by insurance, will be your financial
responsibility.
What You Will Need
- Personal Items: You are encouraged to bring your own sleepwear, underwear, bathrobe and non-slip footwear/slippers, your eyeglasses, contact lenses or a hearing aid, and personal care items such as shampoo, soap, toothbrush, toothpaste and mouthwash. A limited selection of personal care items can be purchased at our hospitals.
- Ontario Health card, Halton Healthcare Services hospital card and proof of additional insurance coverage, if required.
- Bring in your own medications (in their original bottles) and/or a complete list of your medications. This includes a record of your prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications such as vitamins, supplements, herbal remedies and any other non-prescription medications - as well as a list of the dosages and the frequency of each medication you are taking.
Download a pamphlet that explains how we can work together to ensure that you receive all the medications you require.
- A small amount of pocket money for purchasing items at the gift shop such as newspapers, stamps or stationery.
The hospital is not responsible for any of your personal items while you are a patient.
What To Leave At Home
Your Valuables
Please leave your valuables, such as jewellery and large amounts of money at home.
The hospital is not responsible for them while you are here.
Electrical Appliances
Appliances which are not in good working order may present a fire hazard or an electrical hazard. The following personal devices are not permitted in the hospital:
The use of the following are not permitted in the hospital:
- Heating devices of any type, such as heating pads or portable heaters
- Extension cords or power bars
- Fans
- Televisions, VCRs and DVD players
- Laptop computers are permitted on battery only
All allowable electrical equipment must be checked by our Biomedical Engineering Department to ensure that they are in good working order.
Your Room
While every effort will be made to honour your request for a private or semi-private room, our ability to do so will depend on the availability of rooms and the requirements of the entire patient unit. For all accommodation inquiries, please call:
- Georgetown Hospital Admitting Office - ext. 8523
- Milton District Hospital Admitting Office - ext. 7017
- Oakville Hospital Accommodation Office - ext. 4672
Standard Ward
The standard patient room at our HHS Hospitals has four beds. The cost of this room is generally covered by provincial health insurance plans such as OHIP. Non-Canadian residents, patients who are not covered by provincial health insurance plans or those admitted to a self-pay procedure, will be required to pay for their visit.
Private and Semi-Private Rooms
These patient rooms have one (private) or two (semi-private) beds. Since these rooms are not covered by provincial health plans such as OHIP, there is normally an extra charge. Many patients have additional health insurance coverage, which may cover the cost of the room upgrade.
It is a good idea to check your insurance coverage before coming to the hospital.
If you do not have additional coverage under your supplemental insurance plan, and you request a private or semi-private room, you will be responsible for the extra charge.
Additional Charges
Provincial Health Insurance Plans do not cover uninsured services, including but not limited to semi-private or private rooms, telephones, or items such as crutches, aerochambers, or fibreglass casts. Charges for these services are the responsibility of the patient.
Alternative Level of Care
A patient who no longer requires the acute care services of the hospital will be designated as an Alternative Level of Care patient. The Social Worker or Discharge Planner on your unit will have met with you prior to this time to discuss your discharge options based on the care needs identified by your health care team. If you require community support services or specialized rehabilitation services, the necessary referrals will be made with your consent. There have been significant investments in enhancing community support services in our region to help our patients to return to their home at the time of discharge.
Your Social Worker or Discharge Planner will help you to make alternate living arrangements if your care needs can not be met in your own home at the time of discharge. During the waiting period that is often required to make these arrangements you will be charged a co-payment. This co-payment is a daily fee that contributes towards the cost of accommodation and meals. The co-payment charge also applies if you are admitted to the Slow Stream Rehabilitation Program at our HHS hospitals The Ministry of Health and Long Term Care sets the co-payment rates. Information regarding these rates is available from our Finance Department or on the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care website.
If you have any questions regarding ALC, Slow Stream Rehabilitation or Co-payment, please ask to speak with the Social Worker or Discharge Planner on the unit.
Infection Prevention and Control
Infection control practices are important at Halton Healthcare Services (HHS) in maintaining a safe environment for patients by reducing the risk of the potential spread of disease from person to person.
Hospitals, by their nature, care for those with a variety of underlying illnesses. Such patients are at greater risk of acquiring infections while in hospital. HHS strives to keep the risk of patients acquiring hospital-associated infections such as C. difficile, VRE (Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus) and MRSA (Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus) as low as possible. Nonetheless, the risk of acquiring hospital associated infections during a hospital stay remains a remote possibility for any patient.
Halton Healthcare Services continuously evaluates the rates of hospital-associated infections and implements measures to provide our patients with the safest patient environment possible. These rates are publicized on the hospital as well as the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care websites.
Hand Hygiene is a key defence in the prevention of hospital-associated infections. Good hand hygiene means washing hands with soap and water or using a waterless, alcohol-based hand gel or foam product to clean your hands. Whether you are a patient or a visitor, please do your part in complying with hand hygiene. Be sure to clean your hands often and especially before eating, after using the washroom and after sneezing or coughing.
Visitors who do not feel well should not come to the hospital to visit.
Caring for Patients in Hospital Requiring Additional Isolation Precautions
Upon your admission or during your stay, you may have been identified by your doctor, nurse or infection control staff as having a condition or illness that requires additional isolation precautions. These precautions will help prevent transmission (spread) to others around you.
If you require isolation precautions, you will need to stay in your room but you may continue to have visitors. You, your visitors and your care providers will be required to follow specific instructions as identified by your doctor, nurse and infection control staff.
Special signs will be posted on the door frame outside your room with instructions for “All Persons Entering Your Room”.
If you have questions about your care while in isolation, ask your nurse and doctor. You can also ask for a member of the Infection Prevention and Control Service to visit you.
Cover Your Cough
Respiratory infections like the flu spread easily. When you cough or sneeze it is important to use a tissue to cover your mouth and nose. If you are able, try using your forearm to block your cough. If you cough into your hands, you need to wash your hands immediately as your hands can transmit germs to surfaces or people you may be in contact with.
If you have a respiratory illness, you may be asked to wear a mask to prevent the spread of germs. Your healthcare provider may also be required to wear a mask, gloves and gown when caring for you.
Your Meals
Wholesome and well-balanced meals are an important part of your treatment and recovery. The food services team at HHS makes every effort to provide nutritious meals that are prepared according to your special needs.
Meals are served:
- Breakfast 7:30 am to 8:30 am
- Lunch 11:30 am to 12:30 pm
- Dinner 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm
Occasionally, your meals may be delayed if you are scheduled for a special test or treatment. Whenever possible, you will be served your meal when you return to your room.
Halal and Kosher Meal Choices
HHS has expanded its inpatient menu choices to include Halal and Kosher meal choices to better meet the cultural needs of the diverse patient populations it serves within its communities.
A menu, from which you can order your meals for the next day, will come with your breakfast tray. Please mark your selections and have the menu ready for pick-up by 10:00 am. Your menu may be pre-selected for you if you are on a special diet. If a family member or friend wants to eat in your room with you, they may purchase a meal in the cafeteria and bring it back to your room.
Telephones
For your convenience, telephone service is provided at a nominal fee. The telephone is at your bedside and you are responsible for paying for this service. Local calls may be made anytime by dialing “9”, followed by the area code and the telephone number. All long distance calls must be charged to your calling card, home number, or placed as a collect call by dialing “9” and then “0” for the Bell Operator.
- Callers can be connected directly to your room by calling any one of these hospital numbers - 905-873-0111 (GH), 905-845-2571 (OTMH), 905-878-2383 (MDH) - and entering your extension. To determine your phone’s extension number, please call switchboard (0). In consideration of other patients please ask your family and friends to restrict their calls to the hours between 9:00 am and 10:00 pm.
- Patients who have dial-up internet access through local Internet Service Providers can use telephone lines in patient rooms to access the internet.
Television
A rental television is provided at each bedside. To activate your television, turn it on and dial 7789 from your patient phone and follow the instructions.
If you are transferred to another room or unit after you activate your television, dial 7789 or call 1-866-223-3686 and the Television Rental Service will gladly transfer your service to your new location.
Patient Inquiries
Your family is concerned about your care. Please assign one family member to be the main contact who communicates with the patient care unit. Information about your health is not released to anyone other than a family member, unless specifically requested by you. Patient room numbers, telephone extensions and directions to patient rooms are provided at the Reception Desk/ Information Desk at each hospital. To locate a patient or for patient information, please call 905-338-4637 or your main hospital number and ext. 4637.
Patient Safety
At Halton Healthcare Services, providing safe, quality healthcare to our patients is a top priority. Many of our patient safety initiatives are listed on our website.
The patient and their family members are valued members of the healthcare team. We encourage their participation in order to achieve safe, quality care within our family focused environment.
Safety Tips
To keep you safe during your stay, please:
- Wear shoes or slippers with non-slip soles.
- Do not step on the foot rack of the wheelchair when getting in or out. All wheelchairs have brakes which should be on whenever the chair is not moving.
- Ask for help. Do not use over-bed tables, beds, and bedside tables for support.
- Do not use electrical appliances when oxygen is being administered.
- Wash your hands frequently, and encourage your visitors and healthcare providers to do the same.
Respecting Your Wishes
If a person is seriously ill and becomes incapable of making decisions for himself, it will be necessary to find a person who will act as their substitute decision maker.
In the Province of Ontario there are provisions under the law that allow an individual to express how he or she would want to be treated if facing a serious illness and unable to communicate their own wishes.
These legal documents allow you to provide a sense of your general values and wishes if faced with an overwhelming illness or injury. An Advance Directive gives written instructions of your wishes and preferences for care in different situations. A Power of Attorney for Personal Care allows you to choose who will make decisions for you, if you are not able to speak or decide for yourself.
Your doctor, nurse, clergy or lawyer should be able to help you. Discuss your thoughts and preferences, and set them down in writing so your own words can speak for you, even if you, yourself, cannot.
Respecting Your Wishes
If a person is seriously ill and becomes incapable of making decisions for himself, it will be necessary to find a person who will act as their substitute decision maker.
In the Province of Ontario there are provisions under the law that allow an individual to express how he or she would want to be treated if facing a serious illness and unable to communicate their own wishes.
These legal documents allow you to provide a sense of your general values and wishes if faced with an overwhelming illness or injury. An Advance Directive gives written instructions of your wishes and preferences for care in different situations. A Power of Attorney for Personal Care allows you to choose who will make decisions for you, if you are not able to speak or decide for yourself.
Your doctor, nurse, clergy or lawyer should be able to help you. Discuss your thoughts and preferences, and set them down in writing so your own words can speak for you, even if you, yourself, cannot.
Protecting Your Privacy
We respect your privacy. Halton Healthcare Services considers all healthcare information that can be linked to an identifiable person as confidential. Clinical information collected in support of the treatment you receive at the HHS Hospitals will only be disclosed to authorized individuals who are involved in providing your care.
Designated individuals who reside within your “circle of care” and require access to your clinical information to deliver treatment may include:
- all physicians involved in your care
- nurses and allied health professionals (i.e. dietitians, physiotherapists, discharge planners)
- technologists in diagnostic departments (i.e. laboratory, radiology, cardiology)
- clerical/administrative staff responsible for capturing, coding, filing, retrieving and otherwise managing medical records
Our Safeguards
Maintaining the confidentiality of your information is very important to us. We use a combination of physical, procedural and technology-based safeguards to ensure your health information can only be accessed by authorized people. Our Information Systems Department is continually updating our systems to ensure the most modern security technologies are in place to preserve the confidentiality of all patient information.
Release of Non-Clinical Information
Outside the “circle of care” non-clinical information about your visit (i.e. your name, address and location within the hospital) may be released in order to:
- assist visiting family and friends to locate you
- conduct fundraising campaigns through the hospital’s respective fundraising foundations
- conduct patient satisfaction surveys which allow us to monitor and improve the quality of our services
If you wish to be excluded from fundraising initiatives or satisfaction surveys, please notify the clerical staff when you register to ensure you are not included on mailing lists created for these purposes.
If you wish your presence at our hospitals to be concealed, please notify the clerical staff when you register to ensure only those within the “circle of care” will be aware that you are receiving treatment.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the HHS Privacy Officer by calling extension 6711.
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