For patients

Important information for patients and visitors

Across our hospitals, the safety of our patients and staff is paramount. Safety measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) and other infections are in place at our hospitals.

You must not come to our hospitals if you have:

any symptoms of COVID-19
recently tested positive for COVID-19, or are waiting for a test result
been in close contact with a confirmed case
respiratory symptoms, diarrhoea or vomiting.

We ask that you:

wear a surgical face mask when in our hospitals
use the hand gel provided as soon as you enter the hospital, a ward or unit, and frequently thereafter
follow other personal protective equipment (PPE) guidance as directed by staff during your visit, who will also guide you on how to remove and dispose of the PPE appropriately
follow the additional measures that will be requested by our staff if you are visiting a patient with an infection
follow NHS guidance on how to avoid catching and spreading coronavirus.

There are areas of our hospitals where we might have extra measures in place to keep vulnerable patients safe. This might include physical distancing. Please follow the guidance in these areas to keep our patients safe.

Visiting

Following a period of visiting restrictions at our hospitals, we are now carefully welcoming back visitors. See our visiting guidance in full here.

Please note that visiting guidance for some wards in our hospitals may vary, so please check with the nursing team on the ward before visiting.

What we are doing to keep you safe during your visit

We have a range of measures at our hospitals to prevent the spread of infection and keep you safe. For example, we are:

following national guidance for infection prevention
training our staff and volunteers in how to limit the spread of infection
asking some people coming in for a procedure to self-isolate and to have a COVID-19 test
taking extra care cleaning surfaces that people touch

For more information about your outpatient appointment click here.

For more information about coming in for a procedure click here.

How to be referred

We take referrals from GPs and hospital doctors from across the UK - from Aberdeen to Truro. If you feel our specialist services could help you, the first thing to do is speak to your current doctor and request a referral through to a relevant consultant at one of our hospitals.

See our list of specialist consultants

If you are a healthcare professional, find out more about making a referral.

Our hospitals

When you arrive at one of our hospitals, you will probably notice how calm they are. This is because Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals do not have an A&E department and most of our patients have pre-booked appointments or admissions.

Our highly-trained staff will do everything they can to make your stay as comfortable as possible. As well as offering you expert clinical care, we will also do our best to answer any questions you may have and help you to feel relaxed.

"Staff cared for patients with compassion. Feedback from patients confirmed that staff treated them well and with kindness."

The Care Quality Commission

We are keen to ensure that all our patients receive the best possible care.

It is often helpful to know in advance if a patient has special needs so we can be prepared and ensure that there is as little disruption as possible to the patient.

Royal Brompton & Harefield hospitals information

If you need to know anything about our wards, visiting hours, food and restaurant services or patient and carer facilities, find out more:

Staying safe during your time in hospital

Useful Facts

We are the leading UK provider of respiratory care and are national leaders in the specialist areas of paediatric cardiorespiratory care, congenital heart disease and cystic fibrosis.

We are one of the country's largest centres for the treatment of congenital heart disease, treating both children and adults. Our clinical teams treat more than 10,000 patients with these diseases each year and many receive care from their first few days of life through to adulthood.

Our heart attack centre at Harefield has pioneered the use of primary angioplasty for the treatment of heart attacks and has one of the fastest treatment times in the country at only 27 minutes, compared to the national average of 42, a crucial factor in patients' survival.

We are home to the largest cystic fibrosis centre in the UK and the largest centre for surgical treatment of lung cancer.