Pastoral Care

Chaplains are available 24 hours a day by calling the hospital telephone operator (dial "0"). Your own clergyperson is also welcome to visit you at any time.

Soon after your admission, one of the Saint Vincent chaplains will visit, offering you assistance during your stay.

The Saint Vincent Chapel is open daily from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mass is celebrated in the chapel and aired live on Channel 18 Monday through Friday at noon, Saturdays at 5 p.m. and Sundays at 4 p.m.

In addition to Mass, you have the opportunity for daily communion. Penance and the Sacrament of the Sick are given upon request. In emergency situations, infant baptism is offered.

Social Work Services

A social worker can help you cope with your hospital stay, talk over problems and find needed community resources. The social work department also has the resources to refer you to any of a large number of agencies, self-help groups and national and local health organizations.

Before your discharge, a social worker can confer with you, your family and your health care team to determine any ongoing needs. He or she can then refer you to home health care agencies, medical supply companies, nursing homes and other residential care facilities.

An appointment with a social worker can be made by calling extension 5300 on your hospital phone Monday through Saturday between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.

Notary Service

If you should need the services of a notary public during your stay at Saint Vincent, such services can be provided with four to eight hours notice. When a document requires the signature of a witness, please note that it is your responsibility to arrange for someone to serve as that witness, and the individual must sign in the presence of the notary. It will be necessary for you to provide photo identification such as a driver's license. Documents signed in advance cannot be notarized. To arrange for notary services, talk with your social worker or nurse.

Hospitality Cart

A Saint Vincent volunteer travels patient floors Monday through Friday with a hospitality cart carrying an assortment of goods for sale. Items include toiletries, reading material and candy.

Newspaper Delivery

The Erie Daily Times can be purchased from a newspaper carrier who delivers to the nursing floors each weekday morning. On weekends, the newspaper is available from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the gift shop located in the main lobby. USA Today is available in the gift shop seven days a week.

Television Service

All health center patients have televisions in their rooms. A wide range of cable channels is available. Questions about television service can be directed to the service office by calling extension 5806 on your hospital telephone.

Telephone Service

All Saint Vincent patients have bedside telephones, and local telephone service is free. Calls made to Saint Vincent departments can be placed by dialing the extension, or the last four numbers of the department's "452" number. Local calls can be placed by dialing "9" and then the telephone number.

If you'd like to make a long-distance call, instructions are provided in your room.

Although outgoing calls can be placed anytime, incoming calls made through the health center operators are stopped between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. to allow patients undisturbed resting time. However, family and friends can call you directly after 10 p.m. by dialing the phone number listed on your bedside telephone. Questions about telephone service can be directed to the health center operators by dialing "0."

Interpreters and Signers

Saint Vincent can provide foreign language interpreters, as well as signers and TTYs for the hearing-impaired. TTYs are located in the emergency room, at the main switchboard and in the audiology department; a fourth TTY "floats," for use by inpatients. For assistance with interpreting, signing or TTY use, talk with your nurse or call patient relations by dialing extension 7081 on your room phone.

Mail

Mail addressed to you and sent to Saint Vincent is delivered to your room by a Saint Vincent volunteer the day it arrives. Any mail received after your discharge will be forwarded to your home.