When you’re discharged from the hospital, you’re going to have nurses involved, possibly Case Management if you’re not making it home. Most people, our patients, make it home and they return home with a family member, spouse, significant other. When you leave the hospital, obviously you’ll have your packet of discharge information that will include medications you’re supposed to take, how you’re supposed to take them, any pain medications we may put you on, maybe some prescriptions to fill the pain medications, and then your basic discharge instructions. It’s basically your golden rules, or the rules you need to follow at least until you go back to your follow up appointment.
So when you go home the basic discharge process: the doctor will round fairly early in the morning. The typical length of stay depends on your surgery, whether it be just an overnight stay, two nights, three nights. That’s average for our bigger spine surgery is a three night stay, you go home on the fourth day. So with any surgery that you’re having, you can probably tell yourself that might be about the max that you’ll be here and then you’ll get to go home, so that kind of helps with planning too. When you do get home, the biggest thing is family support. It’s everyone’s ultimate goal to get home, and that’s what our goal is for you too.