As a family member or carer, you may identify signs of clinical deterioration that others may not notice, because:
- the patient is well known to you and you know their usual characteristics, allowing subtle changes or signs of deterioration to be identified by you, potentially before being identified by the healthcare team
- you may be spending large amounts of time with the patient, which means you may notice a change in the patient when healthcare workers are not present
Eastern Health believes in partnering with patients, families and carers in the delivery of health care.
Use this process to get help when you are concerned about a patient in hospital who is getting worse, not doing as well as expected or not improving.
Step 1: Talk to any member of the healthcare team regarding your concerns
If you are not satisfied with the response…
Step 2: Talk to the nurse or midwife in charge of the shift
If you are still not satisfied with the response…
Step 3: Phone the Patient Care Hotline on 9975 6789 and explain your concerns. You will need to provide the patient’s name, location and your contact details. A senior clinician will review the patient and provide assistance.
This information is also available in the following languages:
Chinese (traditional) (PDF, 226KB)