Calling Your Nurse
A button to call your nurse is located at your bedside. When you press the button, the nurses station is alerted that you need assistance and a staff member will respond to your call.
Managing Your Pain
As a patient at UTMB Health, you can expect:
- Information about pain and pain relief measures.
- Concerned staff committed to pain prevention and management.
- Health professionals who respond quickly to reports of pain.
- State-of-the-art pain management.
During your stay at UTMB Health, we encourage you to:
- Ask your doctor or nurse what to expect regarding pain and pain management.
- Discuss pain relief options with your doctors and nurses.
- Work with your doctor and nurse to develop a pain management plan.
- Ask for pain relief when pain first begins.
- Help your doctor and nurse assess your pain.
- Tell your doctor or nurse if your pain is not relieved.
- Tell your doctor or nurse about any worries you have about taking pain medication.
Partnering With Our Patients
At UTMB Health, patient safety is our top priority. We encourage our patients to be active participants in their health care through the use of the “Speak Up” program:
Speak up if you have any questions or concerns. If you don’t understand the answer you are given, ask again.
Pay attention to the care you are receiving. Ask questions when you don’t understand.
Educate yourself about your diagnosis, medical tests and plan of care.
Ask a trusted family member or friend to be with you if you are unable to ask questions for yourself.
Know what medications you take.
Use a healthcare organization that has undergone rigorous on-site evaluations, such as UTMB Health.
Participate in decisions about your treatment. You are an integral member of your health care team.
Rapid Response Team
UTMB Health has a Rapid Response Team that can be called if you feel something is wrong with you, or your loved one.
What is the Rapid Response Team?
A Registered Nurse and Respiratory Therapist who specialize in critical care.
Why would the team be called?
- Changes in the way someone is breathing
- Changes in the way someone is talking or thinking
- Someone who becomes confused who is not usually confused
- Bleeding
- Seizures
- You are not sure what is wrong, but something just doesn’t seem right
How would you ask for the Rapid Response Team?
Ask your nurse (or your loved one’s nurse) to call the Rapid Response Team.