Going home from hospital can be a very stressful experience. The thought of not having the support from hospital staff close at hand, as well as the idea of having to look after others when you least feel like it, is not really appealing. The time you spend in hospital recovering will teach you the skills required to independently manage when you go home.

Often, your discharge can seem to be made at the last minute. This is due to the fact that a number of people need to be consulted regarding your progress to see if it is safe for you to go home. With good discharge planning however, you should have a day or so notice as long as everything is going to plan. Before you are discharged you should generally be

•    Medically and physically stable,
•    Able to get in and out of bed by yourself,
•   Able to walk short distances to get to and negotiate the bathroom and living areas of your house,
•    Able to attend you basic hygiene needs,
•    Sit comfortably in a chair for at least 60 minutes.

The discharge time in most hospitals is generally around 9.30-10.00 o’clock. This allows for your room to be cleaned and made ready for the next patient to arrive.

Upon discharge you should have or a plan to arrange all your questions answered, your discharge medications, a letter for your local doctor and any follow-up appointments with your surgeon and any allied health professionals as required.

Questions most commonly asked should include

•       How much activity you can do and how to progress safely to return to normal function,
•       Any rules or regulations that must be followed during the recovery,
•       How much medication to take and how long to take it and what are the signs of the medications side effects,  
•       Any signs and symptoms of complications for the procedure and
•       What sort of follow-up is required and when it should be commenced.

The day before you are discharged, it may be helpful for a family member to take home some of the bulkier items and excess items home ahead of time. Generally a passenger vehicle is perfectly safe to travel home in. If your specialist is unhappy with this arrangement, alternative transportation will be arranged by the hospital.

The first few days at home are “your time”. Remember that whilst in hospital, meals were brought to you, the bathroom and toilet were right next to the bed and people came in to clean your room.  Just living for the first few days can be exhausting, so don’t plan to do too much. Just because you are home doesn’t mean you are better, rather that you are medically stable. It is a good idea to have someone around for a day or two while as you recover to help pick up things, bring you your meals and be a general “gofer”.

Make sure children are aware that you are delicate and to be on their best behaviour. If you have a dog, it can be a good idea to have them on a leash or outside when you first arrive as they can be excited to see you and jump up or get tangled in you feet and make you fall.

It can be normal to get a little depressed of flat during the first few days at home. This is especially evident after the busyness of a hospital stay. Try to get up and dress in lightweight clothing every day; if you look well you will feel well. Spend progressively more time doing gentle activity. When you are comfortable pottering around home, walk to your mailbox. When this is comfortable, go down the street a little. Before you know it you will be walking around the block.

Just remember though, it’s not until you have completed the activity that you can feel sore. So when tackling new activities, always do a little at first no matter how easy it feel and build up the amount once you have seen how you pull up. The patients that generally do the poorest are the ones that do too much, and the ones that don’t do anything, so try to find a happy medium. Also don’t fall into the trap of comparing your recovery against others. Everyone is different; you all start from different level of fitness, age, and degrees of wellness so therefore your recoveries will differ. Go at your own pace; listen to your body, it will tell you how quickly to progress activities.

Remember you are recovering from an illness or operation. Make sure to spend some time during the day with your feel up on the couch or the bed having a rest. If you like, take a moment to partake in a relaxation session (see video section), read a book or have a catnap. Your body needs this time to help recharge its batteries.

Make sure you eat well. It is common to lose your appetite, but your body needs the nutrients to heal itself. It doesn’t have to be large meals, try grazing instead. Whatever works best for you. There are some recipe and snack ideas elsewhere in the forum.