Patient Guide
Mission
It’s our mission to provide you with exceptional healthcare, always.
Vision
Improving lives through compassionate and innovative healthcare.
Values
• Excellence
• Compassion
• Integrity
• Sustainability
• Equity ON THE COVER:
Spine Surgeon David Mourning, MD.
Welcome!
Thank you for trusting us with your care. Please know that you have an entire healthcare team focused on your safety and well-being. We want your experience to be comfortable, positive and safe.
You are an important part of your healthcare team. We encourage you and those you identify to take an active role in your care to make sure we are sensitive to your specific needs.
This guide is designed to help you during your stay and answer some of your questions. If you have additional questions about our services, policies or need other information, please do not hesitate to ask one of your caregivers.
Sincerely,
Brian Ivie Chief Executive Officer Frei Burton PHD #1 Board President
(The operator will connect your call.)
Calling a local number:
Dial “9” then “1,” followed by the Area Code “360,” followed by the seven-digit phone number.
Calling a department inside the hospital:
Dial the four-digit extension (in bold).
Housekeeping: Dial x2201 and say “housekeeping” You may also call 9-1-360-630-6758.
Information Desk: Ext. 5059
Notary Services: Ext. 2386
Case Management: Ext. 2379
Patient Relations Coordinator: Call 360-814-8248 or email patientrelations@ skagitregionalhealth.org
Spiritual Care: Ext. 5927
Patient services and room features
Call a nurse: Your room is connected to the nursing station via an intercom system. To call for your nurse, press the NURSE call button.
Make a phone call: To place a call within the hospital, dial the last four digits. To dial local calls, dial “9” first, then “1” followed by the area code and seven-digit phone number.
Meals: Upon admission, your care team will determine your diet. Once your diet order is placed by your provider, you will receive the Daily Chef’s Special as your first meal. After your first meal has been delivered, a Unit Host will confirm your diet, take your order and answer questions.
If you are unable to make a selection for a given meal period, you will receive the Daily Chef’s Special. All diet orders are determined by the assigned healthcare provider. The Unit Hosts can assist you with meal choices, but they are unable
to provide items outside your diet order. For questions or concerns, please check with your provider and/ or dietitian. If needed, care staff can request a Unit Host to contact you.
Meal Hours:
Breakfast: 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.
Lunch: 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Dinner: 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Watch TV: Each patient room has a television. The TV is controlled by the bedside pillow speaker or the side rail controls. Closed captioning is available for the hearing impaired. Ask a staff member if you have any questions. A TV channel guide is available in your room.
Sleep menu: To help you sleep and heal, we offer a sleep menu for your comfort including eye masks, ear plugs, warm chamomile tea, dimmed lights, curtains drawn and doors shut. Let staff know if you would like one of these services or any items delivered to your room.
Request a newspaper: Call Ext. 5059 for a complimentary edition of The Seattle Times.
Hearing impaired and interpreter services: Deaf or hard-of-hearing patients have access to a Video Remote Interpreter (VRE), TeleTypewriter (TTY) phone or a sign language interpreter. Let staff know if you need one of these services.
Housekeeping: Our Environmental Services Team will clean your room daily between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. To call housekeeping, dial Ext. 2201 and leave a message including your room number and name.
Spiritual care: You and your loved ones may call upon the hospital chaplain, who is available 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. three days per week. Ask your nurse to request these services.
Chapel: The hospital chapel is available at all hours as a quiet sanctuary for everyone. You will find it on the first floor just south of the main hospital entrance.
Please do not:
• To protect patient privacy, do not take photos or videos.
• For safety, do not use electric appliances; battery operated items only.
• For the security of your possessions, leave valuable items at home or give to a trusted family member or friend for safekeeping.
• No smoking: Skagit Regional Health is a smoke-free and tobacco-free campus.
• Zero tolerance: As a healing and safe environment, aggressive or violent behavior is not tolerated. Incidents may result in removal from this facility and prosecution. Administration supports staff members in pressing charges for aggressive behavior they encounter while caring for patients.
MyChart
You can sign up for Skagit Regional Health’s MyChart patient portal to access your medical records. MyChart allows you to review your medical history (lab, test results, current immunizations, preventive care and medical/surgical history) securely.
You can also schedule appointments (in person or via video), pay bills online, send a message to your provider, request a prescription refill and more. MyChart is free to use and available 24 hours a day.
For information and to sign up, go to skagitregionalhealth. org/for-patients/ mychart.
For our visitors
Our visitor guidelines and hours are subject to change. Consult our website for more information about visitor policies and visiting hours. Go to skagitregionalhealth.org .
When you are visiting a patient:
• Wash your hands before entering a patient’s room.
• Follow any additional requirements for Personal Protective Equipment, such as masks.
• Make sure all children have a supervising adult with them at all times.
• Avoid noisy, disruptive behavior and help respect the healing of all patients.
• Ask before bringing foods, drinks or items that may trigger allergies (such as balloons, flowers or perfume).
• Pets are limited to service animals as defined by the ADA.
Services for visitors:
ATM: Located on the first floor across from the cafeteria and near the Emergency Department.
Skagit Bistro is located on the first floor off the main corridor.
Hours: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekends and holidays.
Whidbey Coffee is located on the first floor near the Diagnostic Imaging Center.
Hours: 6 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday; 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday; and 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday.
Vending machines with snacks and beverages are located near the Skagit Bistro, Emergency Department and Family Birth Center.
Restrooms: For the health and safety of all, we ask visitors to use public restrooms and not use patient restrooms. Ask hospital staff to direct you to the nearest public restroom.
Advance Directives and Living Wills
We are usually reluctant to talk about our medical wishes until we’re faced with serious illness, injury or the need to make end-of-life decisions. Too often this results in family conflict, fear or confusion at a time when we are most vulnerable. Having the right documents in place is helpful to you, your family and your care team.
An Advance Directive is a written statement documenting your wishes about the type of care you want and will be used if you are unconscious or unable to speak or communicate for yourself.
A Living Will provides instructions to caregivers about specific medical treatment you would like or would refuse as part of your care plan, if you are no longer able to express informed consent.
A Durable Power of Attorney is a legal document that names a person who can advocate and act on your behalf in making healthcare decisions, in the event you are unable to make decisions for yourself.
To make these decisions:
1. Think about what is important to you.
2. Share your thoughts with your family and physician.
3. Name the person you trust to be your durable power of attorney. To do this, simply complete a Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare document and then have it notarized. Blank documents are available at Skagit Regional Health facilities through nurses, case managers and social workers. Notary services are also available on site.
At Skagit Regional Health, additional resources are available for patients, families and staff to encourage meaningful discussion about receiving care and naming a medical power of attorney.
Additional resources are available through the Washington State Medical Association (wsma.org/ advance-directives) or caringinfo.org .
Patient Rights and Responsibilities
Skagit Regional Health’s patient rights and responsibilities policies reflect on the importance of respect and privacy, confidentiality, information and consent for care for each and every patient.
All patients have the right to receive care in a safe setting where you are informed about your health, treatment and recovery. Each patient has the right to personal privacy and rights to complete information about your medical bill.
Printed copies of the Patient Rights and Responsibilities are available upon request. The document is available in English, Spanish and Russian on the Skagit Regional Health website. (skagitregionalhealth.org/for-patients/ patient-rights-and-responsibilities)
Case Management: Planning for discharge
Skagit Regional Health Case Management staff includes Registered Nurses who collaborate with physicians, nursing staff and other healthcare professionals to ensure that patients receive the care
they need in a timely, cost-effective manner. Case Management is provided at no charge to patients. Your physician will decide when you are medically ready to be discharged from the hospital. While this means you no longer need to be in the hospital, it does not necessarily mean you are completely well. You may need follow-up care.
For patients staying at Skagit Valley Hospital, discharge planning by a nurse or social worker is available every day during business hours. Discharge planners will assist you with preparing for a safe, appropriate discharge either to your home or to an alternative level of care, such as a skilled nursing facility.
If discharging home, you will need to make arrangements for someone to pick you up. Please discuss discharge timing with your clinical team to ensure that you are prepared.
Billing information
Our goal at Skagit Regional Health is to ensure that your bill is processed correctly and in a timely manner. Our Business Office works across departments to gather information needed to process your claim. We also need your help. Please make sure you have given us the correct insurance information and respond promptly to requests for additional information, either from us or from your insurance plan.
Many doctors, ambulance companies and labs are separate businesses with their own billing and account procedures. Depending on the services you received during your hospital stay or clinical visit, you may receive several different bills. If you receive a bill from them and have questions about it, please contact them directly.
Akron Billing (ER Physicians)
800-837-9910
Skagit Radiology
360-424-6161
NW Pathology
360-734-2800
Bellingham Anesthesia
360-647-3377
Cascade Anesthesia (SupportMed) 425-407-1500
SouthSound Physicians
866-874-1526
Contact Skagit Regional Health Financial Services at 360-814-7575 for any questions about your Skagit Regional Health bill.
For more information about our financial assistance program as well as application, go to skagitregionalhealth.org/patientsand-visitors/for-patients/finance-andbilling-information.
Medical records
Patients requesting their own medical records can download the Patient Request for Health Information form by scanning the QR code on this page. Please make sure you complete this form in full.
If you are a third-party requestor, such as a family member or personal representative, you can download
the Authorization for Release of Health Information form by scanning the QR code on this page. Only the patient, the patient’s legal guardian, the parent of a minor patient or the personal representative of a deceased patient may authorize the release of healthcare information. All forms must be completed in full. Incomplete forms will be returned unprocessed.
Skagit Regional Health will provide complimentary copies of your health information to your provider. All other requests are subject to a fee. Please inquire about charges.
For information about your medical record, or to speak with someone about your health information, you may call 360-814-8462, between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday or mail the request form to: 1415 East Kincaid Street, Mount Vernon, WA 98273. Attn: Health Information Management. You can also submit a request by scanning the QR code below.
Feedback
After your stay, we will continue to seek your feedback through the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey. Please take time to complete this brief survey. The results will help us know what we are doing right and how we can improve.
If you have concerns or complaints, contact:
Patient Relations Coordinator: Call 360-814-8248 or email patientrelations@ skagitregionalhealth.org
Washington State Department of Health: 800-633-6828 or 360-236-4700
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services: 1-800-Medicare (1-800-633-4227)
Skagit Regional Heath Specialties and Services
• Cardiology
• Colorectal Surgery
• Dermatology
• Ear, Nose and Throat
• Endocrinology
• Family Medicine
• Foot and Ankle
• Gastroenterology
• General Surgery Hospice of the Northwest Interventional Pain Medicine
• Neurology
• Occupational Medicine
• Oncology
• Orthopedics and Sports Medicine
• Pediatrics
• Plastic/Reconstructive Surgery
• Radiology/Imaging
• Rehabilitation
• Rheumatology
• Sleep Medicine
• Spine Surgery
• Thoracic Surgery
• Urgent Care
• Urology
• Women’s Health
• Wound Care
To find a doctor, use the Find-a-Doc tool on our website: skagitregionalhealth.org/find-a-doctor/find-a-doctor-search. To book an appointment: Call 360-428-2500.
Wellness is an ongoing journey encompassing all aspects of health: Physical, mental, social and emotional. Skagit Regional Health is here to help you Be Well by offering health education, classes, screenings and convenient access to local, expert care when and where you need it. Go to: skagitregionalhealth.org/be-well.
