The next step involves Registration and Preadmission Testing. A business office representative may call you at home or work if needed to obtain additional information for the registration process and a pre-admit nurse will call to obtain your health history.
Registration is located in the lobby on the 1st floor. After completion of the registration process, you will be asked to take a seat in the waiting room. Preadmission Testing is located adjacent to the lobby. You will be escorted or directed to the Preadmission Testing area by hospital staff. A staff member from Preadmission Testing will accompany you through the completion of the preadmission testing process.
A Business Office representative will conduct a financial interview with you regarding your insurance coverage, co-pay (if any), and assist you with making financial arrangements. A business office representative may contact you at home or obtain the information when you come in for Preadmission Testing. If additional questions arise at a later time, call (713) 778-6216.
It is important to get a baseline health assessment to ensure that you are a safe candidate for anesthesia. Often your doctor or the anesthesiologist requires laboratory tests, electrocardiograms and X-rays prior to the day of your procedure. You may not require any tests or they may be done elsewhere. A Pre-Admit Testing nurse will still need to interview you to complete an assessment of your health history and give you preoperative instructions and directions as to where to report to on the day of your procedure. At that time you will have an opportunity to address any concerns that you may have.
It is preferable that you come in at least a day or two prior to your procedure date to allow time to obtain lab results and completion of the entire process. You may Pre-admit up to 30 days prior to your procedure date.
The entire process from registration through testing should take about 1 1/2 hours. There are times when the volumes are high and it may take longer if you have not scheduled an appointment.
Preadmission Testing is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. To schedule an appointment call (713) 778-6200.
The nurse in Preadmission Testing will instruct you where to report to on the day of your procedure. The type of procedure will depend on your entry point into the hospital. You will receive instructions from your doctor's office regarding your arrival time on the day of your procedure.
Visitor parking is available in the Southwest Parking Lot across from the main entrance of the hospital. Additional parking is available throughout the campus.
The type of preparation that you require depends on the type of procedure and type of anesthesia that you are having. Your doctor's office and the Pre-Admit Testing nurse will instruct you.
At Heart & Vascular Institute-Southwest, the anesthesia department is a care team consisting of an anesthesiologist and a nurse anesthetist. You will meet a care team member prior to your procedure. The doctor will discuss the choices that you have regarding the type of anesthesia. The anesthesiologists are independent contractors of the hospital. If you have any questions regarding the anesthesiologists, feel free to call (713) 988-8065.
A staff member will instruct your family/visitors where to wait while you are having your procedure.
The length of stay depends on the type of procedure that you had and the type of anesthesia that you received. If you had a general anesthetic, you will stay in the post-anesthesia care unit for a minimum of one hour. If it is planned for you to go home that same day, you will be assisted with dressing once you are stable and then taken to the Day Surgery Phase II area and seated in a recliner. You will stay in that area until you are ready to be discharged. If your doctor elects to place you in Observation, you will be transferred to the short stay area of the hospital. Your doctor will visit you and discharge you within a 24-hour period depending on your recovery from the procedure. If you are being admitted into the hospital following your procedure, you will be transferred to a hospital room after your recovery phase.
You must have a responsible adult available to drive you home, and someone to care for you for the first 24 hours after your procedure.
At the time of discharge you and your escort will be given verbal and written instructions regarding your home care, follow up with your physician, and an emergency telephone number. If you had day surgery, you will be contacted by a nurse from the Day Surgery Center the following day to check on your progress.
All inpatients in the hospital will receive a Press-Ganey Survey. This is the tool that the hospital utilizes to rate the service that you received. The surveys are sent randomly to every third outpatient. Please take the time to complete the survey and return it in the self addressed envelope. We strive to provide very good service to you and your family, and we would appreciate your feedback.
Please fill out the fields below and we will contact you, or call (713) 222-2273 for more information.