On the main Northwest Hospital & Medical Center campus, located at North 115th Street, patients are scheduled for various surgical procedures. The length of a patient’s hospital stay will depend on the type of surgery scheduled. With recent changes in medicine, technology, and health insurance, many patients are going home sooner after surgery.

Regardless of your length of stay, our staff is committed to helping you understand the entire surgical experience here at Northwest – from preparation for your surgery and day of activities to what happens after surgery and your return home.

Throughout your stay, you will come in contact with various members of your health care team – including physicians, nurses, nursing assistants, case manager, social workers, clinical nurse specialists, and support personnel, to name a few. We encourage you and your family to ask questions and participate in your care. This will help them feel more comfortable while you are in the hospital, as well as assisting you once you are home

Your Surgical Experience
Prior to your surgery, you will be given instructions by your physician and the pre-admission nurse that you will need to follow. If you do not follow these instructions, your surgery may have to be postponed.

All patients scheduled for surgery on the main hospital campus, should report to the Day Surgery entrance of the hospital, located at the back entrance facing 120nd Street near the large totem pole.

During your hospital stay, a family member or friend can be with you in the pre-surgical area before surgery and in the Day Surgery recovery area. If you are moved to a room on one of our medical units, after surgery, your family and friends can be with you during normal visiting hours.

When you are ready to go home, your physician or nurse will give specific instructions on how to care for yourself and who to call if you have problems. For those patients who are discharged the day of their surgery (and spent recovery time on our Day Surgery unit), a nurse will call you within 48 hours of your return home to follow-up on your recovery.

For more detailed information on Your Surgical Experience or your Day Surgery stay, please visit our Brochures section for a downloadable informational brochure.