Visiting Information

Masks are no longer required in all parts of the Trust.

Some areas with clinically vulnerable patients or areas with higher numbers of respiratory viruses have continued to wear masks, reducing risks of cross infection.

You will see this poster below if you are required to wear a mask:

We know that surgical facemasks can be effective at reducing ongoing transmission so we ask that everyone wears them when there is a poster indicating that you should do so.

• You must not visit if you are unwell with cold/ flu like symptoms or vomiting and diarrhoea. We therefore may ask questions to confirm you are not unwell at each visit.
• Please go directly to the area you are visiting and avoid going to other areas of the hospital before your visit.
• Please wash your hands on arrival at the hospital, throughout your visit and when you leave or use the hand sanitiser provided
• Please bring as few personal belongings with you as possible.
• Please do not eat or drink whilst on our wards.
• Please do not use the patient toilets. Public facilities are available away from the wards and clinics.
• A visitor to our adult wards does not need to be the same throughout a patient's stay.
• Please be aware that children under five are not routinely allowed to visit unless there are special circumstances. If you are unsure, please speak to the Ward Manager.

Where a patient may be coming towards the end of life or are critically ill in these areas with active transmissible infection, then please discuss with the nurse in charge to organise safe visiting, we know that this is a very difficult time for you and your loved one and we will do everything we can to support you.

Both Queen's Medical Centre and City Hospital campuses have disabled parking on site and wheelchairs available at the hospital entrances.

Meet and Greet Volunteers are available to offer directions and provide assistance, for example people who are visually impaired or use a wheelchair can be offered escort duties and wheelchair pushing when suitably trained volunteers are on duty. However availability of suitable volunteers cannot be always guaranteed

They are based at the Main Entrance, East Block entrance and Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat Centre entrance at the Queen's Medical Centre campus; and at the outpatients, Green Entrance (Junction S1) and Yellow Entrance (Junction S12) at the City Hospital campus.

If you have any comments or suggestions about any aspect of care and treatment, please contact the Patient Advice and Liaison Service.

Tel: 0800 052 1195 for the City Hospital campus
Tel: 0800 183 0204 for the Queen's Medical Centre campus.

Demand for wheelchairs is extremely high and wheelchair availability cannot be guaranteed at time of high demand.

A £1 refundable deposit is required for each chair.

Patients who use British Sign Language as their first/preferred language and require an interpreter should let hospital staff know so that this can be arranged. More time should be allowed for an interpreted appointment.

The Nottinghamshire Sign Language Interpreting Service can be contacted via telephone (Voice/Typetalk) on: 0115 978 6984 or text: 07792 226250, Monday-Friday 8am-6pm.

For emergency appointments during out of hours please call or text: 07974 396229

The Trust can supply interpreting and translation services to help communication and understanding with non-English speakers.

An interpreter can be booked via hospital staff. Please contact: 0115 924 9924 for more information

The Trust can provide:

• A confidential service through professionally trained interpreters
• Regular cover for specific clinics
• Individual interpreting sessions, pre-booked and in an emergency
• Translated material that is sensitive and appropriate to cultural needs
• The same interpreter wherever possible to ensure continuity and confidentiality

Both our Queen's Medical Centre and City Hospital sites have designated ‘spending areas’, where assistance dogs can be taken to relieve themselves.

The spending areas are caged areas.

The spending area at the QMC can be found outside the Ear, Nose and Throat Department; while at City it is can be found by the left-hand side of the Trust HQ building.

Whether you're a patient, visitor, or staff member, you can't smoke on any of our hospital sites. This is to protect vulnerable patients and children from the adverse effects of cigarette smoke. 

This includes all side roads, car parks and outdoor areas within our campus boundary. If you wish to smoke, you will need to walk off our site, otherwise you may be challenged by NUH staff. We also remind you that, if you choose to smoke off site, you will need to be mindful of our local neighbours, and we ask that you dispose of cigarette butts and litter in a bin. 

You can report individuals smoking on our sites to our Security team. Speak to a member of the front desk team, or ward staff, who can report this on your behalf. 

Smoking advice for patients

When you’re admitted to our hospital, the admitting clinician will ask you whether you’re a smoker. We offer all smokers nicotine replacement therapy which usually takes the form of patches and an inhalator (this will be prescribed for you on the ward).

If you are having a planned operation it is best to stop smoking completely before your operation. If you are unable to do this, stopping after your surgery will still benefit your recovery. Smoking reduces the amount of oxygen in the blood and slows down the rate of wound healing.

As the hospital grounds are smokefree, using nicotine replacement therapy will help you with any cravings whilst you’re admitted. You will also be offered the option of support from our stop smoking advisors, who can visit you at your bedside. They can provide you with additional behavioural support to help you to stay smoke-free once you have left hospital. If you accept additional support from our stop smoking advisors, they can arrange for you to be discharged with two weeks of nicotine replacement therapy. They will then support you for up to twelve weeks over the telephone and arrange for you to continue with your stop smoking medications via your GP or through a local stop smoking service in the community.

You are four times more likely to stay quit using stop smoking medications with the support of a stop smoking advisor.