This is an organisational list: the medical side belongs to your doctor
There is not a single medical instruction here. Every prescription, every restriction on eating and drinking, stopping or continuing medication, preparing for anaesthesia — those are your doctor’s decisions and nobody else’s. This list has a different job: making sure that by the day itself the documents are gathered, the household is sorted, work is informed and someone is there to take you home.
Planned surgery differs from emergency surgery in that you can prepare. Most of the anxiety beforehand is not about the operation but about the unknowns around it: who collects you, what to bring, how to explain it at work, who picks the child up from school. Those questions can be answered in advance.
Questions worth asking the doctor early
| Question | Why |
|---|---|
| Roughly how many days in hospital | It determines the bag, work and household |
| Which tests are needed and when | Some have an expiry date |
| What to do about regular medication | The decision is the doctor’s, but you must ask |
| When to stop eating and drinking | The exact time is set by the doctor |
| What to bring and what is not allowed | Every hospital has its own rules |
| What recovery at home looks like | It determines how you prepare the flat |
Write the questions down in advance and bring the list: half of them are forgotten in the room.
Bag and documents
Pack the bag a few days ahead rather than the night before. Documents, insurance, referrals, test results, a list of the medication you take, minimal toiletries, comfortable clothes, a charger with a long cable and something to occupy your mind. Leave valuables and extras at home.
Write down separately, on paper: allergies, chronic conditions, what you take and contacts for your family. In hospital your phone is not always to hand.
Household matters best sorted beforehand
Food for the first days back, clean bedding, medication as prescribed, bills paid, who collects the children and feeds the pet. Separately: who meets you and takes you home — you cannot drive after anaesthesia, and public transport is often a poor idea too.
If you live alone, arrange who will be nearby or reachable for the first days. That is ordinary foresight, not helplessness.
Work
Give notice early and hand over in writing: access, task status, who to contact. Check how sick leave is arranged where you are — rules differ. The fewer questions reach you in the first days, the calmer the recovery.
When preparation is complete
Tests are done, questions asked and answers written down, the bag is packed, documents are in one place, home and food are ready, children and pets are covered, work is informed, transport home is arranged and someone is reachable. From there, follow your doctor’s instructions.
