Before entering a hospital:

• If it hasn't been discussed, ask your doctor (or his or her office manager) if you can be treated as an outpatient rather than entering the hospital.
• Get pain and other symptom relief until you enter the hospital.
• Ask to see any consent forms in advance so you have time to consider the pros and cons of any treatment and to make any necessary changes. (For instance, don't agree to an associate of your doctor's performing an operation if you only want the surgeon you vetted).

Prepare to maximize your stay in the hospital and avoid medical errors. Proper preparation can help minimize costs and avoid unnecessary infections. For instance, consider the following:

• Create a List of Medications. Doctors will want to know what medications you have are taking on an ongoing basis. (We have a chart that can help).
• Find out which doctor will be in charge of your hospital care. It may not be the person you think.
• Try to time when you enter the hospital to maximize the benefit of being in a hospital. For instance, if you can: enter during the beginning rather than the end of a week. Don't go in the day before a holiday.
• Think about who can be your patient advocate(s) once you are in the hospital.  It is advisable to have an advocate with you as much of the time as possible.
• Prepare a letter that you can give to the person in charge of your floor to let him or her know that you are aware that infections can be picked up in even the best of hospitals and that you would like the team to be extra careful around you. Also include the names of the people you authorize staff to speak with about your medical condition.  (For your information, Medicare stopped paying for complications arising from certain infections and conditions that result from hospital care and are "reasonably preventable." Insurance companies are following suit).
• Check that the hospital will enforce your Living Will and other Advance Directives if it comes to that.
• Think about what is the easiest method for you to keep family and friends up to date.

Keep an emergency room tote bag available in case you have to go to the hospital earlier than anticipated.

If you are entering the hospital for surgery, start thinking about how to minimize cost and maximize the chances for a positive result. For instance:

• Discuss pre-operative tests and limit them to only those that are required.
• Schedule surgery for a day and time most likely to maximize your care.
• Ask that the spot which will be operated on be marked prior to surgery. 
• If your health insurance only pays for in-network personnel, ask that all members of the surgical team, including the anesthesiologist and other specialists, be in the insurer's network.  (Otherwise you may be billed for his or her services. This is known as "Balance Billing").

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