I haven’t stayed in a hospital in 48 years, since I was 11. I’m going to be admitted on Monday for an indeterminate period, and am at a loss as to what to bring and what will be provided. The hospital website is no help at all.
I assume I’ll need my own underwear, robe, and slippers, but not regular clothes. I’ll bring a book or three. I’ve been advised not to bring my laptop at first due to risk of theft. That’s about as far as I’ve got.
Any suggestions and thoughts will be appreciated.
I’d call up the department that sent you the date. A live person might be more use than a website. Surprising they didn’t send you “joining instructions” covering this sort of information.
Brush and comb. I don’t know why none of the hospitals I’ve been in had combs, but they don’t.
They will probably give you a little plastic tub that will have a cheap tiny toothbrush, and small travel/trial sizes of toothpaste, mouth wash, lotion, deodorant, soap, and maybe shampoo.
I don’t know about razors.
If you are taking your cell phone don’t forget your charger. If not, take a list of phone numbers of people you might want to call.
I’d take some books of puzzles as well.
I was in the hospital about a year ago, and I was very glad to have brought my laptop and cellphone. And chargers.
Just make sure to protect any login, programs or data with adequate passwords. And if you have more than one laptop, just bring the oldest and cheapest, just in case. The one I had probably didn’t look worth stealing, but it got me on the Internet.
Phone charger is on my list.
Don’t bring anything you would be upset about losing. Aside from outright theft, which can happen despite everyone’s vigilance, things get lost during transfers from one room to another.
I’ve been hospitalized numerous times and I always leave jewelry and other valuables at home. The only thing that went missing was a pair of slippers, and these were eventually recovered. They had been pushed behind a curtain when the sheets were being changed.
Yes, bring your own comb, brush, and toothbrush.
Bring lists of any current medications.
There will most likely be a telephone in your room. Bring phone numbers. Find out if there is a charge for television and/or phone. If so, bring a small amount of money to cover that if you want it.
Depending on what you’re in for, you may want to bring your own pajamas.
After several hospitalizations in recent years, my suggestions would be these items:
Pajama bottoms and underwear. The pants give you a little dignity when you’re not going through procedures and the undies for most other times. The gowns work better than a tee shirt, as they have all of the necessary snaps, etc.
Toothbrush , razor and hairbrush/comb. The toothbrushes and razors tend to be prison quality. 'Nuff said. Most hospitals do have a comb in the pack, but it won’t handle heavy or ethnic hair.
Entertainment. My preferences are a tablet (easy to keep an eye on, zillions of books and hey, free Wi-Fi) and an adult coloring book with colored pencils. Any non-messy small diversion that can fit in a gallon ziplock bag would work though.
Chargers. For the phone and any other device that you bring.
Insurance card, credit/debit card. I’ve not been in a hospital that didn’t provide TV or Wi-Fi at no charge, but some may. Being a planned stay, the insurance card is a given, but you will need the debit/credit card for any share of your co-pay while there and if you want to order pizza or Chinese food (if allowed) in.
Hot sauce. If you usually season your food more than baby food bland, take a bottle of hot sauce, some garlic powder or something (if your diet allows) to liven up the hospital [del]swill[/del] food.
I hope that you get everything taken care of so that you’re up and about soon.
I don’t think anyone has mentioned the first item on my list: Earplugs.
I’d bring a tablet. Less of a loss if it gets stolen, and almost as useful as a laptop. Definitely a charger. And personally, I would bring a walkman with radio and headphones to get me through sleepless nights, but maybe that’s just me. As far as personal care items, they will supply whatever you need, but if you are fussy you might want to bring your own.
I came in here to say earplugs.
A sleep mask. Even with the lights off and door closed you still get a lot of light.
Chapstick… it’s very dry in a hospital.
Last time I was in the hospital overnight, I had my tablet, earbuds, two chargers (for the tablet and phone), and a grounded extension cord with 3 outlets on it. The hospital will probably have to have their engineering/tech department examine and bless the extension cord.
If you use a CPAP machine or any other personal medical device like that, definitely bring it, or ask your doctor.
Snacks. Obviously, this will depend a lot on why you are in the hospital, with regard to what you can eat and how often. I would also say that unrelated to what you can eat, if you have a family member or visitor who is coming to help you out during your stay, that person might appreciate some snacks as well.
Something to listen to music on. I found it helpful with dealing with pain and good when I was feeling too unwell to do anything but not actually sleepy. I second the puzzle books and I would say bring a variety of reading matter, both in tone and complexity. IMO hospital is not a place to bring anything you think you ought to read.
There are usually few, if any, available electrical outlets in a hospital room, especially if you’re sharing a room. As BobArrgh suggested, take a multi-outlet extension cord – with a long cord.
Also take long charging cords for your cell phone. I was in the hospital for five months, and my cell phone was my life line. I went through four chargers because the staff kept damaging them by doing things like running a cart over them.
Take your own toothbrush and toothpaste. What you get from the hospital is crap. My teeth turned brown from the lousy toothpaste, and the toothbrushes lasted about three days.
I have a small pacsafe bag that will lock and is lined with mesh to prevent someone from slashing it open and can be locked onto something - it fits my cell phone, charger and 10 foot long cable, and also a weeks supply of my medications. I prefer to supply my own because I refused to let sloppy timing screw with my BP meds [clonidine is very time sensitive for me, as little as half an hour can screw me up] so I prefer to self administer. I also don’t have to worry about if I am sharing an injectable pen with someone else…@_@. If I were to stay longer than the meds I brought, mrAru would bring me an extended supply. I prefer my own shampoo, conditioner, body soap, toothpaste, mouthwash comb and toothbrush. I also bring a bathrobe, slippers, my woobie and pillow [mrAru takes stuff home and runs it through the laundry as needed] I bring along spare glasses, and a couple books and magazines [I buy Fantasy and Science Fiction back issues as they are small format and if I lose them I don’t worry about them - got t love yard sales=) ] for when I am separated from my cell phone and need something to read while stuck waiting. I read ebooks and lightly surf the internet on my phone [doing it right now as I don’t have internet at home right now] so I don’t have to worry about whether or not my hospital has patient wifi access or not.
Last time I was in the hospital, it was their policy to dispense my meds, and they did not want me using my own. However, one of them I require the brand name, which they didn’t have, and they insisted that I turn over the bottle of pills to them so they could dispense it to me.
I checked over the bill afterwards very carefully, and sure enough, they had included a charge for medicines I didn’t take. It didn’t make any difference to my finances, but I hate to see even Medicare pay for something unnecessarily. They also charged for oxygen therapy, which I didn’t have, either.
If you don’t like drinking plain water then bring some of those little flavor tablets you can drop into it. Because generally that’s all they have most of the day - except what’s in the 3oz dixie cup that comes with meals.
If you normally have caffeine, and will be allowed it, the NUUN tablets have a modest amount in them - about equal to a cup of tea.
If you’ll be eating normally consider bringing vitamins and fiber capsules to take with meals. You’d think the meals in a hospital would be nutritious, but that hasn’t been my experience.
And repeating for emphasis, sleep mask and ear plugs. Seriously.
I’d bring some gum or hard candy. I find that I get very dry mouth when I’m in the hospital.
Good luck. I hope it’s nothing serious.
Thanks, all, for the advice. Some of it (earplugs, for instance) I would have never thought of.
Yes, it’s serious. I have cancer in at least two places. It may be a quick stay where they run some tests and say, “Sorry,” or they may be able to do something about it. We’ll see.