Portage Patient Guide

We are committed to your care.

Our goal is to provide the best quality care. To do so, we ask for feedback from patients like you. You may be contacted by phone, email or text and asked to complete a confidential survey. Please take the time to complete the survey. Your feedback will help us know what we’re doing well and where we can improve.

Privacy Practices Patient Rights & Responsibilities Concerns About Your Care

Fast facts about your stay.

Support for Caregivers

We encourage patients to pick a key person to support them during their hospital stay. Whether you are that primary support person, or just one of many people caring for and supporting your loved one, you can play an important role in making sure your loved one gets the safest and best care both here and beyond the hospital.

Patient and Family Care
We participate in patient- and family-centered care. We believe that family plays an important role in ensuring the health and well-being of patients of all ages. Our goal is to create partnerships among healthcare practitioners, patients and families that will lead to the best outcomes and enhance the delivery of safe, quality, efficient, effective and timely care.

What to Know Before You Leave
Caregivers can help ensure the best outcome for their loved one after a hospital stay by getting the answers to these three questions:

What is the next step for medical care (home or facility, follow-up with primary care provider or physical therapy, etc.)? Help your loved one arrange the details to make this happen—financial plan, transportation, scheduling, etc.
What new and former medicines does my loved one need to take? Help your loved one understand the details—timing, dosing instructions, side effects, prescription refills, etc.
What health warning signs do I need to watch for and what do I do if they happen? Help your loved one by writing these symptoms down as well as the name and contact number to call.

If you feel like you need a break or help, reach out to friends and family. And consult the resources listed here: National Alliance for Caregiving | Family Caregiver Alliance | Caregiver Action Network

Facts About Your Stay

Access and Hours

- - Visiting hours vary by department.
  - The main entrance to the hospital is open from 5:30 am – 8 pm, Monday through Friday, and from 5 am – 8 pm Saturday and Sunday.
  - The Emergency Department entrance is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week

ATM

For your convenience, an ATM is located in the main lobby.

Bedside Shift Report

We want you to feel comfortable and cared for throughout your stay, so at each nursing shift change—about every 12 hours—your nurse will introduce your new nurse to you. The team will talk about your progress, medicine and tests scheduled for the day. Ask questions. The more you’re involved, the better and safer your care.

Bedside Technology

During your stay, you may see your providers and nurses using computers or tablets. These tools help them care for you by providing around-the-clock monitoring, a variety of resources and quick communication with the rest of your healthcare team. If you have any questions, ask your doctor or nurse.

Café and Dining

UP Health System - Portage Cafe
Location: First floor — take a left from the main entrance lobby and follow the hall down past Human Resources. Take the first right, and the cafe is located on your left.

The Café offers a wide range of rotating meal options, grab-go snacks, hot and cold beverages, and more.

Monday – Friday | Breakfast 7 am to 10:30 am & Lunch 11 am to 2 pm

Coffee | Hot coffee is available in the cafe. A portion of the proceeds from coffee sales are donated back to local charities.

Calling Your Nurse

Your room is connected to the nursing station via an intercom system. To call for your nurse, press the NURSE call button on your bed or a hand-held device. If you have any questions on how to use the call button, ask a staff member to show you.

Cellphones & Video

During your stay, you may see members of your care team using mobile phones. At UP Health System – Portage, our staff are permitted to use phones for work-related activities, such as communicating with doctors or other care team members. Employees are not allowed to use phones for non-work-related activities. There are many work-related benefits of cellphones and other communication devices, including access to medical references, clinical tools and patient information.

Concerns About Your Care

Please speak with your nurse or nursing supervisor if you have any questions or concerns about your care. If your issue still is not resolved, then contact the hospital patient advocate. You also have the right to file your complaint with either:

State of Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA)
Bureau of Community Health Systems
Health Facility Complaints
PO Box 30664
Lansing, MI 48909
Email: BCHS-Complaints@michigan.gov

Office of Quality and Patient Safety
The Joint Commission
One Renaissance Blvd.
Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181
Website: www.jointcommission.org, then click “Report patient safety event”

Sometimes a healthcare choice can involve an ethical concern—such as a wish to refuse life-saving treatment or a disagreement over advance directives. Our medical ethics committee can help you and those who are here to support you make difficult decisions. For more information or to request help, call 906.483.1518.

Electrical Appliances

For your safety, we reserve the right to inspect any electrical appliances brought into the hospital.

Fire Safety

We conduct fire drills from time to time. If you hear an alarm, stay where you are. In an actual emergency, hospital staff will tell you what to do.

Flowers

Flowers are delivered to patient rooms by individual florists. Fresh flowers are available for purchase from The Guilded Rose Gift Shop (see below for info). Please note that fresh flowers and plants are not allowed in Intensive Care Units.

Gift Shop | The Guilded Rose Gift Shop

Location: Main Lobby

Hours of Operation:

Monday – Friday | 10 am to 3 pm
Saturday – Sunday | Closed

Telephone: 906.483.1565

The Guilded Rose Gift Shop offers a wide variety of merchandise including jewelry; reading materials; fresh flowers; candy and snack foods; balloons; toiletries; baby items and gifts for the whole family. If you'd like to order a gift by phone, we will happily deliver to any patient in the main hospital. Visa and MasterCard accepted.

The Guilded Rose Gift Shop is volunteer-run and proceeds are donated back to the hospital for supporting clinical programs and aiding various community endeavors.

Hearing Impaired

We have services available for people who are deaf or hearing impaired. If you need these services, please contact your nurse.

Hospital Safe for Valuables

Send personal belongings and valuables home with a family member or have them placed in the hospital safe. Ask your nurse for more information. The hospital is not responsible for patient valuables that are not secured in the safe. The hospital does not reimburse for lost personal property.

Hourly Rounding

A nurse will visit you every hour during the day and every two hours at night to check on your comfort, help you change positions in bed, assist with trips to the bathroom, and make sure you can reach your phone, call light, and personal items easily.

Housekeeping Services

At UP Health System – Portage, we understand our responsibility to reduce consumption of water, waste and energy. We hope you will join us in our conservation efforts. As part of this effort to conserve the environment, bed linens will be changed as necessary or upon request. Visitors who wish to stay overnight in a patient’s room may use the couch bed. Ask your nurse for linens or assistance with converting the couch.

Interpreters and Translation Services

Interpreter services are available for patients. Please contact your nurse for assistance.

Mail

Mail is delivered to patients Monday through Friday. Flowers may be delivered by individual florists or staff. Fresh flowers are not allowed in critical care areas.

Mail received after discharge will be forwarded to the patient’s home. Outgoing mail may be taken to the nurses station or given to your attending nurse.

Medicines

Please do not bring any prescription or over-the-counter medicines to the hospital. All medicines you take in the hospital need to be prescribed, filled and given to you by hospital staff. Tell your doctor about any medicines you regularly take. If you still need them, hospital staff will give them to you.

Parking

Patient parking is available in the lot outside of the facility's main entrance, as well as outside of the Emergency Department and near the Rehab Entrance. Click here to see the parking map with patient/visitor areas highlighted.

Personal Belongings and Valuables

Personal care items such as contact lenses, eyeglasses, hearing aids and dentures can be stored in your bedside stand when not in use. Please do not put them on your bed or food tray to help avoid them being lost or damaged. Leave valuables like jewelry or cash at home or give them to a trusted relative or friend to watch over. If this is not an option, valuables may be locked up by the nursing supervisor at your request. UP Health System – Portage cannot be responsible for replacing personal belongings.

Public Restrooms

For everyone’s health and safety, we ask visitors not to use patient restrooms. Public restrooms are located throughout the hospital. Ask hospital staff to direct you to the nearest one.

Rapid Response Team

A highly trained group of individuals called the Rapid Response Team is in place at all times in the hospital. This team can be called at any time by you, or those who may be here with you, to check on any medical condition that is of concern before there is a life-threatening emergency. Dial 5555 to request this special service. Ask a staff member to learn more.

Smoking

Given the serious health hazards of tobacco use, we have chosen to become a 100 percent tobacco-free campus. No smoking or tobacco products will be used while on UP Health System – Portage property, parking lots, associated buildings and vehicles. Patients and visitors are asked not to smoke during their hospital visit.

If You Smoke or Use Tobacco
While you are in the hospital, please do not suffer from nicotine withdrawal. You can receive nicotine replacement therapy or other appropriate support during your hospital visit. Please ask your nurse for more information.

Spiritual Care

A small meditation chapel is located on the main level next to the gift shop. It is open at all times for private prayer and meditation for patients, their families, visitors and hospital staff.

If you would like a visit from the chaplain for spiritual care and comfort, please ask your nurse to contact the chaplain on call.

Telephone

All patient rooms have phones. Your friends and family can call your hospital room directly. Your direct phone number is 906.483.1XXX + your three-digit room number. For example, if you are in room number 212, your direct line is 906.483.1212 If you need to make a local phone call, dial 9 + area code + the phone number you want to call. To dial long distance, please dial zero to reach the hospital operator, and they will assist you.

TV

Each patient room has a television. Please be considerate of others by keeping the volume down and turning off your TV at bedtime. TVs are controlled by the bedside pillow speaker or side rail controls. Closed captioning is available for the hearing impaired. Ask a staff member if you have any questions about using your TV.

Vending Machines

Here you can find beverages and snacks 24 hours a day. Vending machines are available 24 hours a day and are located on the first floor’s east wing by the Emergency Department.

Visiting Hours

Visiting hours are subject to change. Please ask your nurse for official hours during your stay.

To promote healing and safety and limit infection, some units may limit the number of visitors you can receive at one time.

General Hours: 7 am to 7 pm. Note: Patients have the right to choose to receive visitors from among family, friends or other individuals at any time during their stay.
Pediatrics: 7 am to 7 pm Note: One parent or other adult support person is permitted to stay 24 hours a day.

Visiting Overnight
Overnight visitation with a patient must be coordinated with the charge nurse and/or nurse manager and is only permitted under certain circumstances. If overnight visitation has been approved, you will be given a visitor card by the nurse, who will provide you with instructions for obtaining a visitor pass from the security guard. Please wear this badge and remain in the waiting room or the patient’s room at all times during your overnight visit. We reserve the right to revoke overnight privileges.

Wifi

We have free Wi-Fi available throughout the hospital for patients and visitors (connect to “PHMI-Guest”). We can accommodate virtual visitations (Skype, FaceTime, etc.) using patient or hospital-supplied devices, such as an iPad or laptop.