One of our nurses will search your bags when you start your hospital stay. We do this to make sure the unit is safe, and no prohibited items are brought to the unit.
Personal items
Please limit your clothing to around 4-5 changes of comfortable clothes. There is a washer and dryer you can use to clean your clothes during your stay at the Adult Acute Mental Health Units. We may ask that extra items be sent home.
Please don’t bring expensive items or large amounts of cash with you.
You may bring some small electrical appliances if they are less than 12 months old. Older items cannot be brought to the hospital due to the risk of malfunction. We may store these items if we think they are a risk to you or other people. Access to electronic items may be restricted for some people for safety reasons.
Documents
Please bring the following, if you have them:
- Any letters or correspondence we have sent you
- Medicare card or healthcare card
- List of medications
- Veteran affairs card
- Contact details for your General Practitioner (GP), next of kin and carer
- Enduring Power of Attorney, Health Direction, Statement of Choices or Guardianship documents. We will make copies and give you back your original
- Private health fund details if you have one
- Workers’ compensation or third-party insurance claim documents
- Details of any health professionals you see privately, such as physiotherapist or naturopath.
What not to bring
For your safety and the safety of everyone in our inpatient units, there are items that you must not bring into the units. They include:
- items made of glass or crockery including make-up mirrors
- weapons or sharp items of any kind
- alcohol
- illicit substances and items related to drug use
- plastic bags
- wire coat hangers
- prescribed and non- prescribed drugs (if you are taking a medicine that we don’t have at the hospital, we may ask you to bring your medicine with you)
- cigarettes and lighters. We can help you quit.
You can download and print the list of What to pack for a mental health stay (PDF, 147.31 KB).
