At the center of our healthcare system is South County Hospital, a 100-private bed facility offering a breadth of healthcare services, programs, and technologies.

Here you’ll find helpful information you’ll need if you're staying overnight at South County Hospital.

On behalf of all the employees of SCH, we want you to be informed participants in your health care and we encourage you and your family to ask questions as we strive to provide personalized, quality care.

Private Rooms

At South County Hospital you’ll find spacious, single-patient rooms, each furnished with a full bath and ample room for a loved one to spend the night. Each room is equipped with internet connections and access to electronic medical records for care providers.

Maternity Patients

If you are a maternity patient arriving at the hospital, you will be admitted to a private birthing room allowing you to remain in this room for both labor and birth.

Family-focused care for the postpartum stay provides maximum opportunities for first-time parents to learn new skills and a review for parents who have already learned basic care and safety.

Patient ID Bracelet

When you arrive, you’ll be met by a member of our Patient Access Team who will ask a host of questions and place a patient ID bracelet on your wrist. This bracelet contains important information for your safety.

We require you to wear it until you leave the hospital.

Your Patient Advocate

At South County Hospital, we are committed to delivering the highest quality, most compassionate care. We respect each patient's right to self-determination, comfort, self-expression, and dignity.

While at the hospital, our Patient Advocate is your resource should you have a concern about your care or that of a loved one.

Contact our Patient Advocate, Nadine McCauley, at nmccauley@southcountyhealth.org or by calling 401-788-1982.

The Patient Advocate should be contacted only if a patient is in the hospital.

Valuables

Patients are asked not to bring items of value to the Hospital.

Comfort Care - Comfort Cart Items

Our Comfort Care Volunteers assist patients by providing friendly companionship, reading to them, and offering hospitality cart items, which include:

Please feel free to call our Comfort Care Request Line at 401-788-8756 to request items. Special requests are welcome. We will do our best to accommodate them.

Meal Services and Schedule

In your room, you’ll find a dining services menu. Your Diet Tech will visit your room to take your order. If your doctor has prescribed a modified diet, some items on the menu may not be appropriate for you.

Your Diet Tech will assist in making the appropriate selections. The service hours are:

• Breakfast: 7:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
• Lunch: 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
• Dinner: 5:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.

Guests are welcome to dine in the hospital cafeteria, the Kenyon Cafe, located on the ground floor of the Sturges Wing.

Interpreter Services

In order for non-English speaking patients to receive the best possible care, it is critical that they understand every aspect of the medical process.

South County Health has the Stratus Video Interpretive IPAD that offers American Sign Language, as well as multiple languages.

Stratus Video is a cloud-based video remote interpretation service that uses innovative technology to connect healthcare providers with licensed interpreters in over 175 spoken and signed languages in less than 30 seconds, on-demand.

We can also connect with a live interpreter, upon patient request, through the Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing of RI for those who are hearing impaired or deaf.

Telephones

A bedside telephone is available to all patients except in the Intensive Care Unit. Family and friends can access your room via telephone by dialing the Hospital’s main number: 401-782-8000. To make a call:

• Local call: Dial 9, then the telephone number
• Long-distance call: Dial 737, then 0, and the telephone number. Long-distance calls may be placed collect, on a calling card, or billed to a credit card.

Cell phone use is not permitted because it may interfere with patient medical and life support equipment. For patient safety, we ask visitors to use cell phones in one of the family waiting areas or main lobby.

Television

South County Hospital is pleased to offer our patients complimentary television services in each room. A flat-screen television displays a variety of channels, including MEDCALM, a music and relaxation channel.

Complimentary WiFi Service

We provide complimentary wireless Internet access to our guests and visitors. Simply connect to the “Internet Access” network with your wireless device. For WiFi support please call our toll-free WiFi support Help Desk at 800-235-0757.

Mail, Flowers, Newspapers

Mail and flowers are delivered daily to patient rooms. Family and friends should address your mail to:

• Your Name
  South County Hospital
  Your Room Number
  100 Kenyon Ave.
  Wakefield, RI 02879

Patient Information is available at 401-788-1488.

Medications

All medications you take while in the Hospital are prescribed by your doctor, dispensed by the hospital pharmacy, and administered by a nurse. Patients are not permitted to administer their own drugs or keep personal medications at their bedsides.

Smoking Policy

For health and safety reasons, South County Hospital is a smoke-free facility.

Smoking is not permitted anywhere on the hospital campus. If you are a smoker, this may be a difficult adjustment.

Talk with your nurse or doctor about what you can do to ease the stress of not smoking. We have alternatives to curb your habit during your stay.

Pet Therapy

Animal-assisted therapy is a growing field used at South County Hospital to help patients recover from or better cope with health problems and to provide comfort and enjoyment.

If you would like a visit with a therapy dog, please contact the Patient Information Desk at 401-788-1488 or dial ext. 1488 on your inpatient phone.

Spiritual Support

For many patients, spiritual concerns are a natural part of an injury or illness. At South County Health, we understand the thoughts and feelings that occur during such times and are ready to help patients and their loved ones navigate them.

Our spiritual care team is a collaboration of trained health care chaplains, local clergy and faith communities, and care providers at all levels who are sensitive to the needs of the whole person.

To contact our chaplain or local clergy, ask a staff member for assistance or call the main hospital phone number at 401-782-8000.

Nominate a Nurse - The DAISY Award

The DAISY Award is an international program that rewards and celebrates the extraordinary clinical skill and compassionate care given by nurses every day.

South County Hospital is happy to be a DAISY Award Partner, recognizing one of our nurses each quarter with this special honor. You can nominate a nurse that made a difference in your care at South County Hospital by using our online form.

Each DAISY Award Honoree will be recognized at a public ceremony in their unit and will receive: a beautiful certificate, a DAISY Award pin, and a hand-carved stone sculpture entitled A Healer’s Touch.

Leaving the Hospital

When you are ready to leave the hospital, your case manager will meet with you and your family to ensure that you have all the information you will need once you leave the hospital. This information might include: