Going to hospital – what you need to know
Whether it is for an emergency or a planned procedure, going to hospital can be a stressful experience. However, there are a few steps that you can take to prepare yourself and help make your hospital stay less overwhelming. We’ve compiled a handy guide to help you navigate your hospital stay.
What is a medical emergency?
It is an emergency medical condition if:
- The medical condition starts suddenly and is unexpected
- The condition has to be treated at once (treatment could involve an operation)
- If treatment does not start at once, the condition could cause weakened bodily functions, serious and lasting damage to organs, limbs or other body parts, or even death.
Preparing for an emergency
No one looks forward to a medical emergency. The reality, though, is that they’re sometimes unavoidable. With a few key tips, you can prepare for medical emergencies and make the best possible choices for you and your family in such a circumstance.
If you need an operation or hospital treatment
For planned hospital stays, you have to call us for preauthorisation at least 48 hours before going to hospital. Remedi covers you for planned hospitalisation up to the overall annual limit for your Option at the Scheme Rate, which means we pay your hospital accounts at the rate we agreed on with the hospital.
The hospital benefit covers expenses that occur while you are in hospital if you have preauthorised your admission. Examples of the expenses we cover are theatre and ward fees, X rays, blood tests and the medicine you have to take while you are in hospital.
Before you go to hospital for a planned procedure, remember to get authorisation first.
How you can get preauthorisation
Please phone our preauthorisation department on 0860 116 116 and follow the prompts to get preauthorisation. When you contact us, please have specific information about your procedure and admission details so that we can help you in the best way possible.
We need details like:
- The name and membership number of the main member and the patient
- The date of the procedure
- Your doctor and anaesthetist’s names and practice numbers
- The name and practice number of the hospital you have chosen from the network. Remember that you must make sure your doctor operates in your chosen hospital
- The diagnosis (ICD 10) codes
- The procedure or treatment codes (called RPL codes)
You have to:
- Visit your doctor so they can decide if it is necessary for you to be admitted to hospital.
- Find out which doctor is going to admit you to hospital. Sometimes, your own doctor will refer you to another doctor or specialist.
- Choose the hospital you want to be admitted to, but remember that not all procedures are done in all hospitals. Your doctor can advise you on this.
- Phone us to find out how we cover healthcare professionals, like anaesthetists and specialists, so that you can reduce the risk of a co payment (having to pay part of the cost yourself).
- Preauthorise your hospital admission by calling us on 0860 116 116 at least 48 hours before you go to hospital. We will give you information about how we will pay for your hospital stay. If you do not confirm your admission and the costs that we would normally cover, you may have a co payment.
The hospital benefit only covers you for admission to a general ward, not a private ward.
To find a hospital or provider and to check if your healthcare professional is covered in full use the easy to access online MaPS tool.
Guide for safer hospital care
Your road to recovery
Actively take part in your health and care. You may be anxious or scared when you need to go to hospital. This is why we offer you some guidelines to prepare you for your hospital visit to highlight actions you can take to help you cope better. Having information and taking action are important ways to help you cope better.
Here are five suggestions for how to be safer in hospital and to get the best care from your healthcare team:
01 | Give information about your health by using the Remedi App or the HealthID App (for doctors). They have a lot of information about your health history.
02 | Ask questions until you understand the answers. Speak up if you have questions or concerns or ask a trusted family member or friend, if you cannot participate yourself in the discussions, to assist you in engaging with your healthcare provider regarding any additional information you may need.
03 | Help prevent infection by ensuring that your hands are clean and sanitised with an alcohol based hand sanitiser.
04 | Make sure that tests and procedures are meant for you. The hospital staff doing the tests should ask you for your full name and birthdate.
05 | Get the right follow up care by asking when you are permitted to participate in normal activities. When leaving hospital, be certain you have a written record of what was wrong with you, what procedures were done, and the names of your discharge medicines.