Having to stay in the hospital can raise a lot of questions.
Questions about a health problem ... treatments, tests, equipment, medicines, bills, who does what ... the list goes on.
And the hospital staff does its best to answer your questions.
Everyone wants to help out ... whether it's an X-ray technician, a nurse, or your doctor.
But sometimes, you don't get as much information as you'd like ...
... or maybe you don't agree with something.
The hospital knows that these things happen sometimes.
And that's why it has someone ... the hospital patient advocate ...
to help you when you're not getting the answers you need.
The patient advocate helps make your voice heard ...
and works with other staff members to take care of questions and problems.
This can be before, during, or after a hospital stay.
Here are some examples of situations where an advocate could help.
You've been waiting all day for a test result. Now it's early evening.
You've asked several people about your test result, but you haven't received it yet.
Or let's say you want to know what each of your medicines is for, but ... after talking to the nurse several times, it's still not clear to you.
Or maybe you and your family don't understand your doctor's treatment plan, and you can't get the answers you need.
Your hospital staff wants to help. But when there's a problem ...
and you feel frustrated or lost ... it's important to take charge of your health and ask for the hospital patient advocate.
