NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde supports patients to be discharged before noon and ‘Home for Lunch’. This involves, alongside their families, carers, and friends, making the necessary arrangements to help them return to the comfort of home the morning of their scheduled discharge.
The ‘Home for Lunch’ initiative asks patients, families, and loved ones to use the following checklist:
- Share any concerns you might have about discharge with the team looking after you
- Arrange transport ahead of time if required
- Make sure you have the right clothes to travel
- You will likely leave the hospital from the discharge lounge. Make sure those collecting you know where this is
- Check you have access to your home, including any keys
- Try to prepare essentials back home, such as food and heating
- Establishing a Power of Attorney for healthcare matters.
By working together with the ward team and doing as much preparation ahead of time as possible, we can help patients leave before noon and be ‘Home for Lunch’.
Why is Home for Lunch important?
There are a number of benefits of a pre-noon discharge.
For patients being discharged:
- You don’t need to wait around any longer than necessary
- It’s better for your health – particularity if you are older
- You can make use of our discharge lounges (where available) while you wait
- You get home to a more comfortable environment.
This means we will be able to see or treat patients who need care, quicker than before. Each early discharge means four more patients will benefit.
- An Acute Medical Unit (AMU) patient can be moved up to the ward for specialist care
- An A&E patient can move into our AMUs for a rapid medical assessment
- A patient waiting in an ambulance can be transferred to the A&E for appropriate emergency care
- An ambulance is freed up to respond faster to another patient in the community.
Professor Angela Wallace, Executive Director of Nursing at NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, explained: “We understand that no one wants to be in hospital any longer than required. That’s why we’re encouraging patients, families, and carers to help us ensure their loved ones get ‘Home for Lunch’. Achieving this means patients are back to their home comforts.”
