Preparing for Your Stay

Patients and their families need to understand that the rehabilitation level of care requires a different mix and number of licensed personnel. Please ask your team about the expected nurse-to-patient and patient-to-aide ratios for the unit.

High-Quality Care

Our first priority is to provide you with the care you need when you need it, with skill, compassion and respect. Tell your caregivers if you have concerns about your care or if you have pain. You have the right to know the identity of the physicians, nurses and other personnel involved in your care, and you also have the right to know when these personnel are students, residents or trainees.

Please share any concerns you may have with the nurse or other individual in charge of that area. Your nurse will document your concerns and share them with the manager/director of the area. You will be contacted by the manager/director within 24 hours to explain the investigation process, at which time you will be given a time frame in which to expect a response or resolution.

If you wish to discuss your concerns at the next level, please contact the Director of Quality Services at 410-448-6733, or the Executive Office at 410-448-6895. Hospital quality of care concerns may also be reported to the State of Maryland Office of Health Care Quality (55 Wade Avenue, Catonsville, MD 21228) at 877-402-8218, and/or the Joint Commission's Office of Quality Monitoring at 800-994-6610.

Caught You at Your Best

If you are especially satisfied with the care you received from an individual staff person, please complete our "Caught You At Your Best" form. These forms are located at various areas throughout the hospital. It gives you the opportunity to acknowledge any special services you feel you received during your stay.

A Safe and Clean Environment

The UM Rehabilitation & Orthopaedic Institute staff works hard to keep you safe. We use special policies and procedures to avoid mistakes in your care and keep you free from abuse or neglect. If anything unexpected and significant happens during your hospital stay, you will be told what happened, and any resulting changes in your care will also be discussed with you. If you have any safety concerns, dial our OOPS hotline. (410-448-6677)

A housekeeper is scheduled to clean each patient's room daily. The housekeeping staff works to ensure your environment is safe and practices to maintain our infection control policies. You may not see your housekeeper if you are in therapy. If you have questions or concerns, please call extension 6281.

Involvement in Your Case

You and your team often make decisions about your care during your hospital stay. The decision-making process should include:

1. Discussing your medical condition and information about medically appropriate treatment choices.
2. Understanding your health care goals and values.
3. Discussing your treatment plan.
4. Getting information from you.
5. Understanding who should make decisions when you are unable to make them. It is recommended that you select one individual to be the family's spokesperson. This individual will be included in sharing information that would normally be your call and would be responsible for sharing this information with family members and close friends.

Protection of Your Privacy

We respect the confidentiality of your relationship with your team and the sensitive information about your health and health care that are part of that relationship. State and federal laws and hospital operating policies protect the privacy of your medical information. You will receive a Notice of Privacy Practice that describes the ways we use, disclose and safeguard patient information and explains how you can obtain a copy of information from our records about your care.

Preparing You and Your Family for When you Leave the Hospital (Discharge Planning)

For rehabilitation patients:

Discharge planning begins in the hospital when you are evaluated by the rehabilitation team. Your team at UM Rehabilitation & Orthopaedic Institute will help you prepare for discharge and teach you and your family how to best care for you at home or in other appropriate settings. Before you leave, your physician may prescribe medications and supplies to use at home. Your physician and treatment team may also recommend home-based or outpatient-based therapy services. UM Rehabilitation & Orthopaedic Institute Orthopedics & Rehabilitation offers a hospital-based outpatient therapy program as well as two satellite practices in Woodlawn and Timonium. Your physician may also schedule a follow-up visit to check your progress. (A member of your treatment team may also call you at home to see how you are doing.) The success of your treatment often depends on your efforts to follow medication, diet and therapy plans. Your discharge date is subject to change based on your progress.

Your family may need to help care for you at home. You can expect us to help you identify resources for follow-up care and to let you know if UM Rehabilitation & Orthopaedic Institute has a financial interest in any referral setting. As long as you agree that we can share information about your care with them, we will coordinate our activities with your caregivers outside UM Rehabilitation & Orthopaedic Institute. You can also expect to receive information and, when possible, training about the self-care you will need when you go home.

On the day of discharge, please arrange with your family or friends to be picked up prior to 1 p.m.

For surgery patients:

The case manager on your unit reviews your chart each day and updates your insurance company on your progress toward meeting treatment goals. The case manager also discusses your condition and the level of services you're receiving with your treatment team. He or she uses this information to determine your discharge date and resources you may need when you leave the hospital.