Bringing your loved one home after he or she is discharged from the hospital can be overwhelming. There are so many things to think about and to do. It’s important that you understand the discharge planning process, that you think clearly about what’s ahead, and that you ask questions and get answers before making the trip back home.
Medicare defines discharge planning as “a process used to decide what a patient needs for a smooth move from one level of care to another.” Being discharged doesn’t mean that a patient is fully recovered; it only means that the hospital’s clinical staff and the insurance company have determined that the patient no longer requires hospital-level care. Planning the hospital discharge requires a team: the physician who authorizes the discharge, a nurse or social worker who coordinates the process, and the family caregiver, who knows the patient best. The “discharge planner” (usually the nurse or social worker) is responsible for making sure that the plan for the patient’s discharge is, according to Medicare, “safe and adequate” and that the process runs smoothly.
As soon as possible after your loved one’s admission to the hospital, ask to meet with the discharge planner. Tell the discharge planner that you are the family caregiver and discuss with them how much time you can devote to being the caregiver, whether you can provide all or some of the care, and any other questions about caring for the patient. You need to feel confident about your ability to provide the care required; if you do not, say so clearly. The hospital team must know what tasks you can and cannot do in order to help you plan for any needed support.
If you feel your loved one is not physically ready to be discharged from the hospital, be sure to speak up. You have the right to appeal the discharge decision and ask for a re-examination by the physician, and the hospital must explain to you the steps of that process.
~ Emily Cooper is Information and Referral Specialist for Caregiver Programs with Boulder County Area Agency on Aging, a Division of Community Services. For more information, call 303-678-6116 or email InfoCaregiver@bouldercounty.org/.