Patient Information
When you register as a patient at Southampton Hospital, our helpful registration team will welcome you. For the registration process, you will need the following information:
- Your name
- Date of birth
- Social Security number
- Address
- Telephone
- Insurance coverage
This information is handled confidentially and ensures that accurate data is provided to those involved in your care.
If your visit is for a specific procedure or test, please contact the appropriate department to schedule an appointment before you register. You can find all of our departments listed under Services.
Pre-Admission Testing
If you are having an ambulatory surgery procedure or being admitted, your doctor will probably request certain pre-admission tests – lab work, an EKG or a chest X-ray, for instance. Please call us at 631-726-8282 to make appointments for your pre-admission tests.
When You Arrive
On the day of your visit, please be sure to bring at least one form of identification, your insurance card and any other documents that you will need – referrals, pre-authorization numbers, and/or physician orders.
Please report first to our concierge in the main lobby, where our staff and volunteers will be happy to welcome you and direct you in completing your registration.
More Information for You
You will be given a number of documents that tell you about your rights as well as authorizations you need to complete when you are admitted. For your convenience, you may review most of these documents below.
Your Right to Privacy
Your Family & Friends’ Access to Information Regarding Your Stay
For detailed information concerning your right to privacy, please review our HIPAA Joint Privacy Notice. Unless you specifically direct Southampton Hospital not to release any information about you, the following information may be provided:
Inpatients
• Confirmation that you are a patient
• Your room number and telephone number
• Your condition, in simple terms (good, fair, critical), if your physician has made it available
Emergency Patients
If you are treated in the emergency department, only the following information will be given:
• Confirmation that you were treated
• Whether you were admitted, released or transferred to another facility
Every person inquiring about a patient is required to provide his or her full name before any information will be released. If additional information is requested, the inquirer will be referred to you or your designated representative. Southampton Hospital will not release any information on any patient age 17 or under. Your friends and relatives wishing to know your location, condition and visiting hours may call Patient Information at 631-726-8381. You may inquire about additional privacy options.
Your Rights
When you come to Southampton Hospital, you will be given an opportunity to let us know your preferences in case of emergency. We support our patient's right to formulate written or oral instructions regarding care in the event of incapacitation and/or their inability to direct care. Southampton Hospital complies with federal and state statutes related to advance directives and healthcare proxies.
ADVANCED DIRECTIVES
All patients checking into a hospital for more than 23 hours in New York State are asked to provide the hospital with certain documents that explain their wishes in case of emergency. Preparing these documents when you are in good health and keeping them on hand, ready for any emergency, is a smart choice and easy to accomplish.
Healthcare Proxy: We’ll ask you to appoint someone you trust to make health decisions for you in case you are unable to make those decisions yourself. A healthcare proxy lets you appoint a healthcare agent and clearly define the decisions you would prefer your agent to make in the event you become incapacitated and unable to direct your own care. The healthcare proxy also offers you the option of defining any organ or other anatomical donation you may wish to make.
Healthcare Proxy (pdf)
A Living Will allows you to leave written instructions that explain your healthcare wishes about end-of-life care. If you do not wish to consult an attorney, you can fill out a standard living will form which, when properly witnessed, is legally binding in New York State.
NY Living Will (pdf)
A Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) Order. A hospital representative will be happy to review and explain these options to you. A booklet titled "Your Rights as a Hospital Patient" contains information on all of these advanced directives, and you will be given a copy of it when you are admitted. If you would like to study advance directives and plan your healthcare instructions prior to admittance, the New York State Attorney General’s website has a comprehensive booklet available online.
Admission To The Hospital
When you are admitted to Southampton Hospital, there are a number of procedures about which you may have questions. We will try to answer them here for you.
Wrist Identification Band
You will be given a wrist identification band displaying your name and your patient identification number. For your safety, please wear this band at all times so that our staff can confirm your identity.
Your Identification Label
You will be given preprinted labels that include your name, date of birth, medical record number, and the name of your attending or admitting physician. These labels will be kept at the nursing station during your stay and used to duplicate your name and patient information on all forms and documents that are part of your care.
Your Medical Record
You will be assigned a medical record number that will be used for any future medical care you have as either an inpatient or outpatient at Southampton Hospital. The contents of your medical record are confidential and will not be released without your written authorization. If you or your guardian should require information from your medical record, you will need to send a written request to our Medical Records Department.
Your Hospital Stay
After you register, you will be escorted you to your room. Your first visitor will probably be your nurse. Your nurse will discuss information necessary to develop your nursing care plan, familiarize you with your room and answer any questions you may have about your stay. As you become acquainted with your surroundings, other staff members will visit to make sure you are comfortable and to administer care.
What to Bring
We suggest that you bring only a nightgown or pajamas, robe, slippers and small toiletries such as a toothbrush, comb, shaving equipment and cosmetics. The Hospital will provide for most of your needs during your stay.
Please keep only a limited amount of cash with you during your stay and leave all other valuables at home. If you are unable to leave your valuables home, they may be placed in the Hospital safe. You will be able to reclaim your from our Security Department when you are discharged. Assistive devices such as dentures, eyeglasses and hearing aids should be kept in containers specifically designated for them; we suggest that you keep them in your bedside stand when they are not being used.
Your Comfort
Our staff is committed to making your stay as comfortable as possible. You can expect to have your reports of pain responded to promptly, to be fully informed about and have access to state-of-the-art pain relief measures, and to have your questions and concerns about pain management addressed.
To be certain your pain is promptly and effectively managed, it is important that you let your nurse or doctor know as soon as pain begins and also tell them if your pain is not relieved.
Your Meals
Soon after you arrive, a member of our Nutritional Services Department will visit to discuss your individual nutritional requirements as prescribed by your physician. During your stay, a dietitian will monitor your nutritional care and can answer any diet-related questions or concerns you may have.
To avoid delay, your first day’s meals will probably be chosen for you, based on the diet ordered by your doctor. Thereafter, every morning during your stay, you will be given a daily menu customized for your prescribed diet. Circle the items you would like to be served and return the completed menu to our nutrition staff. At times, your physician’s orders for tests and treatments or a diet change may require us to delay or substitute your meal.
In general, meals will be served as follows:
Breakfast |
7:45 a.m - 9:00 a.m. |
Lunch |
11:45 a.m -1:00 p.m. |
Dinner |
4:45 - 6:00 p.m. |
Please do not have visitors bring food into the Hospital, since some items may be inconsistent with your treatment and nutritional requirements. In addition, there are no facilities on the patient floors for food preparation or storage.
If you would like to order a guest tray for a relative or friend, simply ask your nurse to contact the Nutritional Services Department. A nominal charge will be added to your final bill.
Mail, Packages, Flowers & Newspapers
Mail, flowers and packages will be delivered to your room daily. Be sure to let relatives and friends know your room number for prompt delivery. The Hospital’s mailing address is 240 Meeting House Lane, Southampton, NY 11968-5090, and the main telephone number is 631-726-8200.
Newsday is delivered to patient rooms each day. You can buy other newspapers, including The Southampton Press, The East Hampton Star and The New York Times, from the Hospital’s gift shop and have them delivered to your room.
Pastoral Visits
Please feel welcome to contact a chaplain of your faith for prayer, counsel and administration of sacraments and rites. If you want a chaplain to visit, please notify your nurse.
Telephone Service
We are pleased to offer local and long distance telephone services 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with charges conveniently billed to your home phone or credit card. Cell phones may not be used within the Hospital because they can interfere with the functioning of medical equipment.
Television Service
Television sets that are safe for hospital use are available in each room and cable service is provided free of charge.
Smoking
Southampton Hospital maintains a smoke-free environment. Smoking is not permitted anywhere within the Hospital.
Leaving the Hospital
When your physician decides you are well enough to leave the Hospital, a discharge order and a discharge plan will be prepared, with recommendations for follow-up visits, medications, diet and other aspects concerning your physical and emotional health.
One of the members of your discharge-planning team may be a care management specialist who offers services and support to help reduce some of the stress you and your family may experience as a result of your illness. Our care management specialists can help make arrangements for whatever continued medical care will be necessary after your hospital stay and can make counseling service referrals to patients who are struggling with social, emotional and financial challenges resulting from their illness.
Once all of the details for leaving the Hospital have been finalized, a staff member or volunteer will take you by wheelchair to the main entrance. Your family member or friend may meet you at this location to transport you home..
Your Hospital Bill
Your hospital bill includes a basic daily charge that covers your room, meals, routine nursing care and services for ancillary care such as x-rays, laboratory tests and medications, as well as operating and delivery room fees. Fees for your personal physician, surgeon, pathologist, radiologist, anesthesiologist and other consultants are not included and will be billed separately.
If you have insurance coverage, the Hospital will bill your insurance company directly for covered services. However, those services not covered by insurance are the patient's responsibility.
Paying Your Hospital Bill
You will receive a bill for any services not paid by your insurance company. Payments are due within 30 days after you receive your statement. The Hospital depends upon your prompt payment to meet its financial obligations. Cash, money orders, checks, Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover are accepted.
If you are unable to pay your hospital bill in full, payment plans can be arranged through our Patient Financial Services office. It is important that you contact the office promptly after receiving your first statement.
All patients who register with the Hospital as self-pay, and all patients who are unable to pay their hospital bills in full, will receive information on the Hospital’s Charity Care Program, as well as a Charity Care Eligibility and Application Package. The Hospital’s Charity Care Program covers hospital bills only. Physician bills, medications, routine physicals, immunizations, co-payments, deductibles and other health-related, non-hospital services and equipment are not covered. The Hospital does not and cannot negotiate with other providers on a patient’s behalf for a reduction in fees associated with balances due.
Questions About Your Hospital Bill?
If you have questions about your hospital bill, please call 631-723-2160 or visit our Patient Financial Services office, located at 133 West Montauk Highway in Hampton Bays. The office is open for inquiries Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The mailing address for Patient Financial Services is 240 Meeting House Lane, Southampton, NY, 11968.
Questions About Physicians’ Bills?
If you have questions regarding physicians’ bills, please call:
Healthcare Provider |
Phone Number |
Personal Physician |
Physician’s office |
Surgeon |
Surgeon’s office |
Radiologist |
(631) 979-4400 |
Pathologist |
(631) 476-4000 |
Anesthesiologist |
(631) 726-8350 |
Should you receive a statement from DBL Billing Service, please contact them at (631) 467-1736.
Help Us Bill Your Insurance Company
You can assist us in billing your insurance company by providing complete and accurate information upon your admission to the Hospital. If you have previously visited the Hospital, it is important that we be informed of any changes in your address, insurance coverage, employment and the party financially responsible for your bill.
Questions About Your Insurance Coverage?
If you have questions about your insurance coverage, including whether your insurer covers services provided by Southampton Hospital and what services are covered, please contact your insurance company.