Throughout your hospitalization, you are cared for by doctors, nurses and many other professionals with specialized knowledge. In addition to the people you will meet during your stay, many others are working behind the scenes to contribute to the quality of your care. The secretary at the nurses’ station on your unit can help you contact any member of your team.
Physicians
Primary Nurses
Social Workers
Pharmacists
Patient Services Assistants
Interpreters
Volunteers
Chaplains
Ethics Consultation Service
Meditation Room
Blood Banking Services
Physicians
Your doctor—the “attending physician”—will visit you regularly and direct your program of medical care, coordinating all aspects from pre-admission to discharge. Because Tufts Medical Center is a teaching hospital, your attending physician is assisted by members of the house staff—residents and interns—who are physicians obtaining specialized training. You may meet some medical students and physicians’ assistants as well. Your medical care is always directed by a senior physician—your attending physician. Physician consultants, available at the Medical Center in a variety of specialties and subspecialties, may also visit you at the request of your attending physician. A physician member of your team is available around the clock to ensure that you receive expert medical care from someone
familiar with your medical needs.
Primary Nurses
Every patient admitted to the Medical Center has a primary nurse. Your primary nurse is a registered nurse who works with you and your family in planning your nursing care. Your primary nurse will help you understand your illness or condition, its treatment, and how to care for yourself after discharge. In the absence of your primary nurse, other nurses, associate nurses, provide care to you based on the plan designed by you and your primary nurse.
Your primary nurse is a member of your health care team who works closely with your physician and others to ensure that your care is coordinated throughout your stay. If you have any questions or concerns during your stay, feel free to discuss them with your primary nurse. You can also call your nurse after you are discharged. Each unit has a nurse manager who is responsible for the overall management of that unit. The nurse manager works closely with the nursing staff to ensure that patients and their families receive the highest quality care throughout their stay.
If you have any concerns regarding your nursing care, please feel free to talk directly with your primary nurse or contact the nurse manager who will be happy to work with you.
Social Workers
The Medical Center staff recognizes that illness and the need for hospitalization can be a stressful experience for both patients and families. To help you and your family cope with these stresses, a clinical social worker is available as an integral member of the health care team.
Social workers are available to patients and families before, during, and after hospitalization. They provide a variety of services that range from individual, family or group counseling to finding accommodations for patients and families who are from out of town. Social workers can also assist patients in planning for their personal safety and accessing protective services, if needed. As a member of the health care team, your social worker routinely consults with hospital staff and will, when appropriate and with your permission, also work collaboratively with
community agencies on your behalf to ensure that you receive optimal care.
If you or your family wish to speak with a social worker regarding any of these services, please call the Department of Social Work Services at 617-636-5136 between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. After these hours, if you need to speak with a social worker on an emergency basis, please let the staff know and they can contact the social worker on call.
Pharmacists
In addition to preparing and dispensing medications, our pharmacists monitor your drug therapy and provide information to physicians and nurses. You are asked not to take any personal medication—either prescription or over-the-counter—while you are in the hospital without checking with a physician, nurse or pharmacist. Your pharmacist will review the medication to make sure it is appropriate for you to take. A pharmacist can also answer your questions about the medication prescribed by your physician. The unit secretary or your nurse
can help you contact a pharmacist.
Patient Services Assistants
Each patient care area has Patient Services Assistants assigned to provide personalized nonclinical services. These PSAs perform a variety of tasks including room cleaning, providing transportation within the hospital, serving meals and responding to your requests. Each PSA is poised to serve you in an effort to make your stay as comfortable as possible.
Interpreters
The Medical Center provides interpreters in more than 30 languages, as well as video sign language interpreting services. Patients can request an interpreter by asking the secretary on the unit to call 617-636-5547. At night and on weekends, interpreters are available for emergencies only.
Volunteers
Volunteers provide many complimentary services and are available to assist you in a variety of ways during your stay. In addition to delivering mail, volunteers can write letters for patients, read aloud to them, do errands within the Medical Center or spend time visiting.
Volunteer services for patients include:
Book Cart
A large selection of books and magazines is available for patients and families. The book cart can be brought to patient rooms on request. Large-print books are also available.
Activity Cart
Patients can choose crossword puzzles, playing cards, and games from the activity
cart, which can be brought to patients’ rooms on request.
In addition, the Volunteer Office offers an extensive library of videos and books on tape. Portable audio players and VCRs can be borrowed from the Volunteer Office and brought to the bedside by calling 617-636-1377.
Newspapers
Volunteers can deliver newspapers to patients’ rooms each weekday morning. If you would like to request a newspaper, please call 617-636-1377.
Volunteers work throughout the hospital in many different capacities, and new volunteers are always welcome. If you or a friend are interested in volunteering, please call the Volunteer Office between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. at 617-636-1377.
Chaplains
Chaplains of various faiths can visit you and your family to offer emotional and spiritual support. If you wish to speak with a chaplain, ask the unit secretary to make arrangements, or call 617-636-5111 and ask the operator to page the chaplain.
Ethics Consultation Service
The Ethics Consultation Service responds to consultation requests for ethical and procedural issues relating to individual patients and their families. Any member of the healthcare team can make a consultation request, as can patients or their family members. A request for an ethics consultation may be initiated by contacting the Ethics Coordinator through the Pastoral Care office at 617-636-2500.
Meditation Room
The Marjorie Hanna Cleveland Meditation Room on Floating 6 is available for prayer, meditation and quiet conversation. Special services are held on religious holidays. Listings of churches, mosques and synagogues in the area can be obtained by calling the Department of Social Work Services at 617-636-5136.
Blood Banking Services
The Red Cross has blood collection facilities at 25 Stuart Street nearby the Medical Center. Relatives and others are encouraged to donate blood at this location and at the Neely Cell Therapy and Collection Center at Tufts Medical Center. Call 617-556-2200 for additional Red Cross information.
The Neely Cell Therapy and Collection Center offers an “Autologous and Donor-Specific Blood Donation Program” for patients. In the autologous program, a patient donates in advance his or her blood for transfusion during surgery. The donor-specific program allows the patient to name his or her blood donors. For more information, contact your physician or the Center at 617-636-6453.