Single room at the hospital?

Question

Hello,

hue to nightly cough, digestive problems (specifically: flatulence) and the fear of infections I would feel much more comfortable getting a single room when being admitted to the hospital.

Is this advisable/necessary from a hygiene perspective (own bathroom and toilet) as well?

Best wishes.

Answer

Hello,

this is not an easy question, since of course it would be nice and also sensible in many respects if patients with a cough, digestive problems, or who prefer to have their own toilet for reasons of hygiene would get a single room. In reality, however, many hospitals have only a few single rooms and more double rooms; therefore, it is not always possible to assign a single room to everyone who would like one or for whom it would make sense. At our hospital, we try to accommodate CF patients in single rooms, but we do not always manage to. Of course, with regard to hygiene and the transmission of infections, one has to pay attention to which patients one puts into one room with CF patients, and also to putting CF patients together (and even this can only be done under certain conditions). With the right choices, however, a double room should not be a problem. One should avoid shared rooms with more than two people, though. For therapy, one can go to a different room, as is often the case when a CF patient is uncomfortable doing therapy in a shared room.

Kind regards
Prof. Joachim Bargon

10.11.2009