Your Safety

Learn more about staying safe during your stay at South Texas Health System Edinburg.

Tobacco-Free Environment

South Texas Health System Edinburg is a smoke-free facility. As health care providers, we recognize the hazards of smoking and enforce a “No Smoking” policy. No one is permitted to smoke or use tobacco inside any of our facilities at any time, under any circumstances.

Smoking and Your Health

Smoking is one of the most controllable risk factors that cause illness and death. People who smoke have the potential to die earlier than those who do not smoke. Cigarettes are filled with poison that goes into the lungs when you inhale. Coughing, dizziness and burning of the eyes, nose and throat are early signs that smoking is harming you. Smoking increases your health risks if you have high blood pressure or high cholesterol. The long-term problems of smoking may include cancer, heart and blood vessel disease, lung disease and gastrointestinal disease.

Secondhand Smoke

Secondhand smoke is a mixture of the smoke given off by the burning end of a cigarette, pipe or cigar and the smoke exhaled from the lungs of smokers. Secondhand smoke is estimated to cause 3,000 lung cancer deaths and 35,000 heart disease deaths in non-smokers each year. Children are especially susceptible. Their lungs are still developing and childhood exposure to second hand smoke results in decreased lung function.

Medications

Please give your nurse a list of all medications you are currently taking, including prescription and over the counter medications, as well as vitamins. This list should also include any medications from Mexico that you may be taking. Include the dosage, frequency and the last time each medication was taken. Your physician will decide which medications you should continue to take while in the hospital. Your nurse will bring you medications ordered by your physician.

All medications you may have brought with you should be returned home as they can interfere or interact with tests or medicines ordered for your treatment. For your safety and protection, only medicines approved by your physician and supplied by our pharmacy will be given during your stay. Your nurse will ask you questions concerning your past responses to medications and any allergies you may have. You may be asked to wear an allergy bracelet, which alerts all caregivers to your allergies. At discharge, your medications will be reviewed with you, and you will receive a list of these medications to take home. You should share this list with your primary care physician after discharge.

Pain Management

Pain is your body’s way of reacting to injury or illness. Everyone reacts to pain in different ways. While you are a patient at South Texas Health System Edinburg, your pain will be evaluated and managed as often as needed. Together, we will work on a pain goal that is acceptable to you, keeping you as comfortable and as pain free as possible. The nurse will give you a pamphlet on pain management that can help you measure your pain.

Pneumococcal and Flu Vaccines

The pneumococcal vaccine is available at South Texas Health System Edinburg for patients, and is given year round. If you are interested in this vaccine, please discuss this with your physician or nurse to see if you meet the criteria. The flu vaccine is offered to our patients during flu season, from the month of October until March.

Infection Control

Our facilities follow infection control practices to prevent the spread of infection among patients, physicians, staff and visitors. Everyone plays an active role in controlling infections in the hospital, and you can help by following these guidelines:

Wash Your Hands

This is the single most important infection control measure that you can do. Wash with soap and water using vigorous friction for a minimum of 15 seconds. Wash after using the restroom, before and after eating, after touching an unclean area and when your hands are visibly dirty. In addition to handwashing, our facilities have wall-mounted alcohol-based hand gel dispensers for all to use.

• If you see any kind of soiling, please tell the staff so that we can have it cleaned.
• Do not eat other people’s food and do not share your food with anyone.
• Do not use anyone’s linens or hygiene items.
• Your visitors and family should not visit when they are sick or have an infection.
• If you are in “isolation” please follow the isolation instructions sign posted on your door and ask that all your visitors do the same. Visitors may be required to wear gloves, a gown and a mask.

Cell Phones

Cell phones may be used in the public areas of the hospital. If you have a cell phone with you, please use it with discretion and keep it at a low volume or in vibrate mode while a physician is visiting with a patient or family. The camera option on a cell phone may not be used at any time. South Texas Health System Edinburg is not responsible for the loss of cell phones.

Security

As much as we are concerned for your personal safety, we encourage you to take an active role in your personal safety and the security of your personal belongings. We encourage you to leave your personal belongings and valuables at home and only bring those belongings that are essential to your care. The hospital is not responsible for loss or damage to personal belongings. The hospital has a safe to use for the safe-keeping of your valuables in the event you are unable to send your personal belongings or valuables home. For more information, please speak to your nurse.

Lost and Found

Items found on hospital premises should be turned into security. Items that patients and visitors inadvertently leave in their rooms will be turned into security. Medications left behind are turned into the pharmacy. Perishable items such as flowers, fruit and food normally will be disposed of immediately. All other items will be kept for 30 days before disposal. We will make an effort to contact the owners of any item found on campus.