Admission

Pre-admission Questionnaire

Please complete the pre-admission questionnaire included in your admission package. Completing this form and returning it to the hospital within two weeks will assist us in making your admission go smoothly.

Your Insurance

Prior to your hospital admission it is important to check with your insurer for coverage details of your maternity benefits. The nursing staff will not be able to answer questions regarding your insurance coverage.

After your baby’s birth, please be sure to contact your insurer and/or your employer to have your new baby added to your health insurance policy immediately.  There is a 30-day time limit to have your child added as a member of your policy, however, it could take six weeks for paperwork to be processed.

Once we complete insurance verifications, you will be notified of the co-pay amount. Payment of your co-pay will be required prior to your discharge from the hospital. Financial counselors may visit you during your hospital stay. Please call 781-624 8053 or 781-624-4329 for assistance.

Aetna

1-800-624-0756

Blue Cross/Blue Shield

1-617-246-5000

Cigna

1-800-345-9458

Fallon

1-800-333-2535

Harvard/Pilgrim

1-800-742-8326

MassHealth

1-800-833-7582

Neighborhood Health

1-800-462-5449

Tufts

1-888-884-2404

United Healthcare

1-800-822-3806

Financial Arrangements

If you are a self-pay patient or have other questions or concerns about financial arrangements, please call our financial counselors at 781-624-4329 for assistance. Also if you are a self-pay patient, you may be eligible for financial assistance such as Commonwealth Care, MassHealth or Health Safety Net. Please call 781-624-4329 for eligibility information and verification requirements.

Billing Information

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) also applies to billing information. Refer to page 5 for more information on HIPAA. If at any time you would like us to discuss this information with a family member or friend, you will need to sign an authorization form. This form may be obtained through the Health Information Department (Medical Records) either in person or by calling 781-624-8237.

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Health Care Proxy

South Shore Hospital recognizes patients’ rights to name someone they know and trust to make health decisions for them if, for any reason and at any time, they become unable to make or communicate such decisions. These Advanced Medical Directives include a Health Care Proxy, Living Will, and/or Durable Power of Attorney. For more information or to get a copy of a Health Care Proxy, please call our concierge at 781-624-4300 or visit the Advance Directives page.

Suggestions for Your Labor Bag

Please do not bring any valuables with you. (wallet, jewelry, purse). We cannot be responsible for lost personal items.

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Hospital Admission

When it is time for you to come to the hospital, your physician/midwife may call us in advance to let us know you are coming. This will allow our patient access services staff to have paperwork and records ready when you arrive. Completing and mailing the pre-admission questionnaire found within the front pocket of this admission package will help expedite your admission process. When you arrive, please go to the Birthing Center patient access services office. Please enter the hospital through the South entrance, near the emergency department on Fogg Road. Follow the signs to Maternity on the second floor (use Emilson elevators). The Birthing Center registration office is left off the elevator.

Updates and Information for Family and Friends

Confidentiality and privacy are a priority for hospital staff. All information surrounding labor and birth is confidential. Please make your preferences regarding sharing of information known to the staff at South Shore Hospital. Consider appointing one family member to be a liaison or “information point person.” The staff will honor your decision regarding the amount and nature of information you wish to be shared. Please tell family and friends your individual preferences before your admission.

Cellular Phones

The use of cellular phones is not permitted in high-risk patient areas. High-risk locations include the emergency department treatment areas, the operating room and recovery areas, the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), the special care nurseries, surgical intensive care unit (SICU), and the Birthing Center.

Patients, families, and visitors are requested to put their wireless communication devices in the “silent mode.”

Cellular phones may be used in the entrance lobbies, waiting areas, lounges, common areas, elevator lobbies, and in the dining room.

Support Persons and Visitors During Labor

Individual preferences regarding labor and support vary widely. We encourage you to share your wishes with your South Shore Hospital care providers and family.

We request that you choose one to three individuals who will support you during labor as well as birth, and share information with your other friends and family as you allow. Your support persons will wear pink bands to identify them to our staff.

We ask that all other family and visitors wait in our waiting room, dining room or in the South Lobby, where your support persons can keep them updated. To assure privacy and safety for all patients and visitors on the unit, waiting is not allowed in the hallways outside your birthing room or in unit desk areas. Your family may visit with you approximately one hour and a half after your delivery, which allows us time to provide appropriate nursing care.

Should you require a Cesarean birth, you will be transferred from the Birthing Center to our Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU). Visitors to the PACU may be limited. If the unit is full or there are patient issues, our nurses can make the determination on whether to allow visiting. No one under 16 is allowed in the PACU.

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