Calvary Mater Newcastle

Patients

Rights and Responsibilities
Based on our values of hospitality, healing, stewardship and respect, the management and staff of Calvary Mater Newcastle recognises, protects and promotes the rights of each person receiving care, the partnership with health care providers and ensures that personal dignity and autonomy are upheld at all times.  

For further information about your Rights and Responsibilities please refer to our brochure. View the Calvary Rights & Responsibilities brochure.

Admissions
Except in an emergency, your doctor will have planned your admission to hospital.  On arrival to the hospital you should present to the admissions office which is located in the main foyer of the hospital, located in Edith Street, Waratah. From here you will be directed to the ward where you will be admitted.

It is vital that the medical and nursing staff are aware of any allergies from which you suffer. This includes foods, bites, stings and other materials eg. iodine and lotions, in addition to medications. If you do not tell the staff, they may not have any other way of gaining this information, and your health may suffer as a consequence.

Consent
As a general rule your consent is required before you receive any treatment in hospital. In certain circumstances, such as emergency treatment, however, it may not be possible to obtain consent prior to treatment. Do not feel obliged to give consent if you do not wish to.  Always ask for alternate options if you are in doubt about what is in your best interests.

Your consent is required if the proposed treatment is experimental, that is, if your treatment is medical research. In these circumstances a very detailed explanation will be given and your participation is voluntary. No inducement or coercion is permitted.  You have the right to withdraw from a research program at any time, without compromising the care given to you. Should you have any concerns about a research program in which you are involved, please contact either your doctor, the Director of Clinical Services (Medical), or the Professional Officer of the Hunter Research Ethics Committee on telephone (02) 4921 4950.

Health Fund
If you choose to use your private health insurance at Calvary Mater Newcastle it means that you will have no out-of-pocket expenses, 100% coverage on all of your inpatient service accounts excluding front-end deductible table, self insured, Medicare Ineligible, Workers Compensation, Third Party and Public Liability and your choice of doctor.

All accounts will be processed for you by our administrative support service. As we are a registered Simplified Billing Agent with HIC (Medicare) and will process your inpatient service accounts through Medicare and your private health fund. These accounts include, hospital Doctors, Pathology, X-ray and some Visiting Medical Officers accounts.

It is important that you understand that if you present to the emergency department and are admitted, that you can request to be classified as a private patient and can be transferred to the care of the doctor of your choice if he/she has admitting privileges to the hospital. This can occur after your admission under the specialist of the day on the admitting emergency roster. You may also request transfer to a private hospital. The staff are obliged to facilitate this for you.

If you require further information about using your private health insurance, please contact the Manager Revenue Services on (02) 4014 4721 during business hours

For all information pertaining to your hospital stay, please refer to our Patient Information Brochure

Discharge Arrangements
Planning for discharge commences prior to admission when you will be advised of the probable length of your stay in hospital.

You will be discharged between 10am and 11am generally. Please arrange for someone to take you home at this time. At the time of discharge please ensure that you:

• Have all of your belongings
• Have any private x-rays that you may have brought into hospital with you
• Have any of the medications which you brought into hospital with you
• Have received your discharge medications (if any)
• If changes were made to your regular medications during your admission the Pharmacist is able to discard any unwanted medication.  Please note: You are encouraged to discuss your medications with either your doctor or a pharmacist prior to your discharge
• Are aware of when your follow-up appointment is with your specialist or general practitioner or another doctor to whom you have been referred
• Have any discharge information given to you by the staff.

Your stay
Patients may nominate two persons who can be contacted if there are any concerns regarding progress and treatment. Patients should nominate just one contact person who can make all enquiries to the hospital on behalf of their partner and family. This will assist us to ensure your privacy. Telephone numbers for wards can be obtained from the nursing staff.

What to bring to hospital

• Toiletries – soap, toothbrush, comb, tissues, shaving gear and other personal items
• Clothing – sleepwear, dressing gown
• Well fitting non-slip slippers or shoes must be worn (bare feet or thongs are trip/slip hazards)
• Pen to fill out menus
• Spectacles, hearing aids (do not forget your batteries), walking stick or other aids which you normally use
• Medicare card and other medical/hospital benefit book/card
• Healthcare/pensioner benefit card/Veteran’s Affairs card (where applicable)
• Private x-rays and other investigation reports
• Medications which you are taking at home including over the counter preparations and complementary medicines
• A small amount of money for newspapers etc

Do not bring:

• Electrical appliances such as television, hairdryer
• Mobile phones (these can interfere with medical equipment)
• Food
• Talcum powder as it can cause patients to slip and fall
• Thongs (they are a trip/slip hazard)
• Valuables and large sums of money.  The hospital cannot accept responsibility for these
• Alcohol, cigarettes, illegal drugs or weapons such as guns, knives or other implements

Meals
Calvary Mater Newcastle provides an extensive meal service to patients based on approved Australian Dietary guidelines.  All meals are served from the hospital’s kitchen where we focus on presentation and meeting patient’s nutritional needs.  Diet staff will ensure that you are issued with a daily menu from which you can select your meals.  The menu is prepared in consultation with the hospital’s dietitians who are available to attend to any special dietary requirements.

All food provided by the hospital has been certified as safe for consumption by patients with weakened immune systems.

Calvary Mater Newcastle is now a totally 'SMOKE FREE' site.

Smoking is not permitted in any buildings, cars or carparks or anywhere on the hospital site in accordance with NSW Health Department policy. Please do not smoke at any of our entrances - our patient and visitor community have the right to a smoke free environment - you can alert security or our staff if you observe people smoking in our grounds and car parks.  Help us to keep our campus completely smoke free!

Alcohol is not permitted unless authorised by the treating Medical Officer.

If you would like assistance to quit smoking or alcohol please ask staff.

Access to "Quit" programs is available at our hospital and your enquiry is always treated in a confidential manner.

For more information about the services available during your stay please view our patient information brochure.