What to do after being discharged from hospital: a checklist
Make sure your GP gets the discharge letter, arrange a repeat prescription before the medicine you were sent home with runs out, know the next steps in your care and who to contact if something goes wrong, and have someone check on you in the first days.
Why is this harder than it sounds?
Leaving hospital is a handover, and handovers are where things drop. You go home tired, often with new medicines, sometimes with equipment, and a letter that's easy to leave in a bag. The NHS notes that medicine to take home usually covers about 7 days, so a repeat prescription needs arranging quickly, and GP surgeries need notice to issue one.
What should you do?
Before you leave the ward
The NHS says staff should make sure you know the next steps in your care and how to get help from the hospital, have the medicine and equipment you need and know how to use it, and that information about your care is shared with your GP. Ask if any of that isn't clear.
Give your GP the letter
You'll usually be given a letter for your GP about your treatment and future care. The NHS advises giving it to your GP as soon as possible.
Sort your medicines in the first days
Hospital supplies are usually for about 7 days. If you need to keep taking a medicine, arrange a repeat prescription from your GP before it runs out; the NHS suggests ordering up to 5 working days ahead. A pharmacist can help with newly prescribed medicines.
Update your medicines list
Write down anything new, changed or stopped, and why.
Know your follow-up
Appointments, tests, dressing changes, and when each is due. Put dates in your diary.
Line up support
The NHS suggests asking a friend or relative to stay or visit regularly, and making sure you have food, drink and essentials in.
Know who to call
Keep the ward or clinic number with your letter, and know when to use your GP, NHS 111 or 999.
What tends not to work
Assuming the hospital and GP will sort the medicines between them. Check.
Leaving the discharge letter in your bag.
Doing too much in the first days. The NHS notes it's normal to feel very tired after an operation.
Common questions
How long does medicine from the hospital last?
The NHS says you'll usually be given enough for the following 7 days, so arrange a repeat prescription from your GP before it runs out.
What if I need care at home after leaving hospital?
Hospital staff should discuss this with you before you leave. You may be offered short-term care after a needs assessment; your local council arranges longer-term care assessments.
Where Nura fits
Send Nura a photo of your discharge letter, or tell it what the ward said, and it turns the follow-up into a Care plan: when to order the repeat prescription, when appointments are, what you were asked to watch. It checks in on each step when it's due. If you'd like, you can invite a family member or friend to that Care plan so they can see its progress; they never see your conversation with Nura.
Sources
General information, not medical advice. Nura does not diagnose, prescribe or replace your clinician. In an emergency call 999 (UK) or 911 (US); in the UK, NHS 111 can help if you need medical help but it isn't an emergency.