Canberra Hospital and North Canberra Hospital wards have mainly shared rooms of two or four patients. You may be placed in a room with people of different genders. Our Bed Management team work hard to ensure you are placed on a ward where you can receive care most suited to your condition.
You will have bedside drawers and a small cupboard to store your personal items, an overbed table, a television mounted to the ceiling and your nurse call/call bell. Each room has a window and curtains for privacy as well as a shared bathroom. Each bed has a number.
Your room also has a communication board. We can write important information about you that will help us care for you better. For example, if you have hearing loss we can note it on your board. This will let our staff know to make sure they are facing you when they are talking.
Your bed
Your bed has a panel of buttons, or a wired controller that allows you to move the bed into different positions. The back of the bed moves up and down so you can sit comfortably or lay flat.
Your bed has a button that raises and lowers the bed. If you are getting out of bed it is safest to lower the bed so that your feet can touch the floor before trying to stand.
Beds also have side railings. The railings can be raised or lowered as needed. Having the railings up is useful to give you something to hold on to when you are moving position in the bed. They also allow you sleep comfortably without the worry of falling out of the bed. Always remember to lower the railing before getting out of bed.
In some situations, it may be necessary to keep the railings up when you are in bed. Please follow your nurse’s advice.
Call bell
The call bell is a control that you can use to call the nurse and in some cases control the lights and television. Keep the call bell close by, where you can reach it, day and night.
The call bell buttons let you:
- call for a nurse
- turn your light on and off
- use the television and radio
- control the volume of the television and radio.
Bathrooms
Bathrooms are located at the entrance to each room. Bathrooms are shared with other patients in your room.
We will give you bath towels to use during your stay.
If you need help getting to the bathroom, or using the toilet, press your call bell to ask for help.
If you need to call for a nurse while in the bathroom press the Nurse call button.
If you need help showering your nurse can assist you. Unless it is urgent, it’s best to give the nurses some time to arrange to help you in the shower.
Please tell your nurse or midwife if the bathroom needs cleaning.
Visitor toilets are at the lift lobby before you enter the ward. Patient bathrooms are for patients only to stop the spread of infections.
Wi-Fi and television
Patient rooms have televisions which are usually mounted to the ceiling towards the end of the bed. Some areas only have televisions in the lounge areas. There is no cost for using the television. You control your television using your call bell.
Canberra Hospital and North Canberra Hospital have free Wi-Fi for all patients and visitors.
To access the Wi-Fi on your smart phone, laptop or tablet choose the network name HEALTHfree.
If you have any problems, call our team on (02) 6207 8999.
Telephones
Public telephones are located throughout the hospital. Some inpatient rooms at Canberra Hospital have phones that you can use with a phone card. You can buy phone cards from the Canberra Hospitals Foundation gift shop, Building 2, Level 2.
You may use your mobile phone while in your room; please be considerate of other patients, and keep call volume, duration and frequency to a minimum.