LH - Patient & Visitor Information - Discharge and Financial Arrangements

Discharge and Financial Arrangements
Discharge Planning
Recent advances in medical treatment and technology, as well as in the therapies available outside the hospital, have greatly reduced the length of time most people must be in a hospital. Today, only patients who are acutely ill need to stay in a hospital for care. Although you may no longer need the hospital's acute level of care, you may still require some type of continuing care after you leave. It is important that you consider your discharge plans almost immediately upon your hospital admission to ensure that arrangements are in place when you are medically ready for discharge. Early planning will hasten your recovery, avoid costly delays and optimize use of health care resources.

Staff from our Care Management Department will work with you and the hospital team to coordinate services for your post-hospital care. Dependent on your individual needs, these may include use of our outpatient services such as physical, occupational or speech therapy, Outpatient Cardiac Rehabilitation, Outpatient Nutrition Counseling, Outpatient Pulmonary Center, home care services, a skilled nursing facility or rehabilitation hospital.

Every patient is assigned a case manager upon admission to the hospital. Because these decisions and arrangements may be difficult and time-consuming, you and your family should talk with a member of the Social Work or Case Management Departments as soon as possible. Our staff can also help to answer questions about your insurance coverage.
Lankenau Hospital
Care Management Department 610-645-8021 or 610-645-2171

Discharge Information
To help your discharge from our hospital go smoothly, please:

withdraw any valuables you have kept in the hospital safe;
pack all your personal belongings;
please advise family members or friends that the expected discharge time is 12 noon;
leave a forwarding address in the event you are not returning to the address recorded with Admissions.

Your case manager or social worker has worked with you and your family to identify and provide any continuing services you may need at home. Before you leave the hospital, your physician or nurse will review discharge instructions including medications, diet, activity restrictions and future appointments.

Maternity patients and their babies may be discharged from the Hospital directly from the Labor/Delivery/Recovery Suite with physician permission. We remind parents to bring a car seat as Pennsylvania law requires that all infants must be restrained in a car seat while in a moving vehicle.

Financial Services
Our Patient Financial Services Office staff is available Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., to answer any questions you may have about your hospital bill and methods of payment. The Customer Service number is 610-658-6060.

Your insurance company, Medicare or Medicaid will receive an itemized bill listing all your hospital charges shortly after you are discharged. You will also receive a summary of charges for your records. After your insurance company has made its payment, you will receive a statement for the balance due. You are responsible for the unpaid portion of your bill. It is the hospital's policy to provide necessary hospital care, free of charge, to patients who meet certain financial criteria. If you feel that you cannot afford to pay your hospital bill, please contact our Patient Financial Services Department.

Your Hospital Bill
Your basic room rate includes the charge for your room; regular, special diet or alternative menu meals; and general nursing care. Your basic room rate does not include the following common charges:

guest or visitor meals
coronary care or intensive care units
electrocardiograms
laboratory tests
operating or delivery room
physical, occupational or speech therapy
respiratory therapy
special drugs or medications
telephone and television services
X-ray examinations or treatment.

You will receive a separate bill for anesthesia fees, physicians' fees, and private duty nurse's fees.
If you have any questions regarding your hospital bill or payment methods, please call Patient Financial Services, 610-658-6060.

Your Physician's Bill
Your physician's bill is separate from your hospital bill. Your attending physician and any consulting physicians will bill you directly.

Hospital-based physicians, including anesthesiologists, radiologists, pathologists and Emergency Department physicians, also will bill you directly. For questions regarding these bills, please call:
Anesthesiology Associates 609-770-3024
Emergency Medical Associates 1-800-666-2455
Pathology Associates 610-459-3214
Radiology Associates 610-941-3300

Please ask your attending physician and hospital-based physicians the extent to which they participate in your insurance plan. Not all physicians participate to the same degree as the hospital.

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Contact Us
Lankenau Hospital 100 Lancaster Avenue Wynnewood, PA 19096 610-645-2000

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