About Your Stay

Patient relaxing We understand that there are many places you’d rather be than in the hospital. While you are here, we will do everything to insure a positive experience, while delivering the highest quality of health care.

This Patient Information Guide explains hospital services and procedures. Should you have any additional questions, please do not hesitate to ask any member of our staff for help.

Patient Representatives

Patient Representatives are available to help you with nonmedical problems, special situations, needs or services, and interpretation of hospital policies and procedures. If you have any questions or comments, please call them at extension 2432.

Valuables

Cooper University Hospital is not responsible for items left at your bedside and encourages you to send them home with your family or friends. If this is not possible, ask your nurse to have your valuables placed in the hospital safe. Be especially careful of personal care items such as dentures, eye glasses and hearing aids. These items can be safely and easily stored in your bedside cabinet.

Cellular Phones

To reduce the potential risk of medical equipment malfunctions, the use of cellular phones is not permitted within ten feet of critically-monitored patients. Cellular phones may be used in public areas, in offices and at nursing stations.

No Smoking Policy

Cooper is a smoke-free campus and prohibits smoking within 25 feet of the campus. All of us at Cooper thank you for respecting our no-smoking policy.

Telephone and Television Service

Your family and friends can reach you by dialing a direct number located on the wall across from your bed. Incoming calls can be received between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. There is no charge for incoming calls.

Telephone – How to Activate

First, dial x2111 to activate your telephone service.
For local calls, dial 9, wait for the dial tone and dial the number. Remember, not all 856 area code calls are toll-free.
For long-distance calls, dial 8–0–area code and the number (for calls in the 856/609 area code).
For all other area codes, dial 810–area code and number.
All long-distance calls must be charged to a telephone credit card, home phone or the call must be placed collect.

Television – How to Activate

First, dial x2111 to activate your television.
Your bedside control includes a pillow speaker and nursing call button.
All televisions are closed captioned for the hearing impaired, which is available by pushing the “CC” button on your remote control.
Cooper offers educational channels on-demand at no charge by dialing x4999 on your phone.
Chapel services are available on channel 41.
A newborn channel is available for new and expectant mothers at no charge to you on channels 77 and 78.
A listing of all TV channels is available by pushing the TV guide on your remote control.

Meals

Meal time is often a welcomed respite. Initially, a dietitian will select your first meals in the hospital. Later, you may choose meals from a menu that is distributed a day in advance. A member of our staff will deliver your tray to your bedside and pick up your tray after the meals. At that time, he or she will collect your completed menu selections for the next day's meals.

For a small fee, visitors may arrange for meals to be served to them. They pay for the meals at the cashier's window, located in the Pavilion lobby, and are given a receipt. They then make menu selections with the Food and Nutrition Department.

To order a lunch tray, visitors must go to the cashier's window before 11 a.m. To order a dinner tray, visitors should go to the cashier's window before 3:30 p.m.

Interpreters and Assistance for the Hearing-Impaired

Contact your nurse if you need the services of a language interpreter or assistance to manage a hearing impairment.

Gratuities

Hospital staff is here to serve you and takes pride in caring for you and your family. We request that you refrain from offering tips or gifts to individual staff members, as they are not permitted to accept gratuities. Please complete your patient satisfaction survey and describe your interaction with any outstanding staff members. Cooper acknowledges all staff members mentioned in patient satisfaction surveys.

Hair-Care Services

A barber or a hairdresser will come to your room to give you a haircut, shave, shampoo or set for a fee. Contact our patient representative to help arrange this service.

Pastoral Care

Chaplains serve in all areas of our hospital and are available to provide support and comfort to patients and family members in times of need. Nursing staff can contact a chaplain when requested. Because Cooper recognizes patients bring with them a variety of cultural and religious backgrounds, chaplains minister to each individual, sensitive to the patient's personal beliefs.

Our non-denominational chapel is accessible from our Pavilion lobby and is open 24 hours a day for quiet reflection and prayer.

Ethical Issues

Patients and their families who are faced with a moral issue, relating to patient care, have the option of having the issue brought before Cooper’s Bioethics Committee through a consult. Concerns may include, but are not limited to, end-of-life care issues; ethical issues at the beginning of life; role of religion in health care; access to health services; organ transplantation; and patient rights to accept or refuse medical treatment. To request a consult, call our risk management/insurance office at (856) 342-2112.

Cooper CarePages: Using theWeb to Stay in Touch with Loved Ones

Cooper University Hospital and CarePages.com have teamed up to help you use the web to communicate with your loved ones who are hospitalized or receiving treatment at Cooper University Hospital.

Cooper understands that if you are like many people, you have family and friends in many places with a variety of schedules. With a CarePage, you don’t have to try and make or receive numerous phone calls to update people about the patient’s condition. You may post information at your convenience. Click here to learn more about Cooper CarePages.