What to bring with you
Storage space is limited, so please just bring the basics such as nightclothes, dressing gown and footwear, comfortable clothes and toiletries.
You will also need to bring toiletries, but hair dryers are provided. We also encourage all patients to bring a set of comfortable clothes and to get dressed if possible whilst you are in hospital.
We also encourage patients to maintain as normal a routine as possible and use the day room to read or undertake activities and walk around the ward. This will help you to maintain muscle strength and reduce the likelihood of getting complications e.g. pressure sores or thrombosis in your veins.
Please leave valuables and jewellery at home and only bring a small amount of money into hospital with you to cover day-to-day needs). NHS Shetland cannot be held responsible for loss of any valuables or personal possessions (including clothes, spectacles, hearing aids and mobile phones) that you bring into hospital.
Medicines
If you are currently taking any medicines please bring all of them with you (do not forget the things you may not think of as medicine such as the oral contraceptive, inhalers, creams and supplements). They will be kept in a locker at the side of your bed.
Bringing your own medicines means they are not wasted, you keep taking what you are used to and also we will know what else we can safely give you. Please make sure you take your medicines home with you when you leave unless they have been stopped during your stay.
If you have a card (such as a steroid card), with details of any current treatment, please bring it with you and show it to the nurse in charge.
If you are started on a new medicine while in hospital, you will usually be given at least 7 days supply from the hospital pharmacy to take home. It is likely that you will see a pharmacist at some point during your stay. Please feel free to ask them any questions you may have about your medicines.
It could be dangerous for you to take any medicines that the doctors are unaware of or that visitors might bring you. Always tell the nurse in charge if medicines are brought to you during your stay.
Electrical Items
If you are bringing in any mains powered electrical equipment, then please ensure that it has a sealed plug and is in good repair (with no cracks to the wiring or plug). If it is anything other than a phone or laptop charger or hair dryer/hair straighteners, then ask the nurse in charge to request an electrical test from the Estates Department before you use it.
Mobile phones can be used in the hospital but please show consideration for other patients and have your ring tone set to silent and/or vibrate.