Leaving the Hospital

Discharge time:

Once your care team has determined that you’re ready to be discharged from the hospital, you will want to let your family know so they can pick you up or arrange for transportation.

Discharges typically happen by 11 a.m. each day.

Being picked up from the hospital:

Your family can pick you up directly on the unit or at one of the designated pick-up locations near the main entrance at both hospitals.

If you need help arranging for transportation, please speak with your care team. Please note that while your care team may help to arrange for transport, Mackenzie Health does not pay the cost of transportation to leave the hospital.  

Next steps:

As part of your discharge planning, your care team will work with you and your family to identify and enroll in any community supports you may need to continue your recovery at home. Please note that not all community services are fully funded and there may be costs incurred.

The provincial government recently passed legislation (More Beds, Better Care Act, 2022) authorizing hospital care teams to make decisions around patients who no longer need to be cared for in a hospital but who still require an Alternate Level of Care (ALC).

As Mackenzie Health implements Bill 7, we will continue to operate with compassion and collaboration with the best interests of our patients at heart. We will work with patients and their families in a collaborative way to find a long-term care home placement that works for them.

Hospitals are specialized care environments for patients in need of acute care. Hospitals are not a place to live, and they are not ideal environments for patients once they no longer need the services hospitals provide. We need to ensure that our acute care beds are available for those who require an acute level of care. It is always best for patients and their loved ones to consider the supports they may require for recovery and day-to-day needs, as early as possible before a patient is well enough to leave the hospital.

We encourage patients and their families to make informed choices and to identify a number of long-term care home options to increase the likelihood of an interim placement they’re comfortable with while waiting for an available bed in a preferred long-term care home. Alternatively, patients and loved ones are encouraged to consider arranging for care at home, if possible, until a long-term care bed opens up in a preferred long-term care home.

If you have any questions about what this legislation means for you, please speak to your discharge planning team.