- When do I come to the Emergency department?
- When do I go to the on-call GP?
- What do I bring to the Emergency department?
- How much do I pay for admission to the Emergency department?
- Can a companion or family member come with me?
- Can I eat and drink while waiting?
- Why do I sometimes have to wait a long time at the Emergency department?
- I forgot to ask for a certificate during emergency admission. Can I still do so?
- Which doctor will treat me?
When do I come to the Emergency department?
The Emergency department takes care of patients with an urgent medical problem. You can come to our department day and night.
Patients come to the Emergency department via different routes:
- Via the 112 emergency centre (including ambulance and MUG)
- After referral from a GP or specialist (you will be given a referral letter)
- On your own initiative
Do you doubt whether the Emergency department is the right one for your problem? If so, contact your GP first, who will be able to clarify matters quickly.
When do I go to the on-call GP?
Do you have a medical problem at night, at the weekend or on a public holiday that you would normally go to the GP with and can't wait for your GP to be available? Then call 1733.
- In the evening and at night you will be connected to the on-call GP.
- During the day on weekends and public holidays, you will be connected to the out-of-hours GP service.
Read more about the out-of-hours GP services in Ghent.
How much do I pay for an admission to the Emergency department?
When billing for admission to the Emergency department, the government makes a distinction whether you have been referred or not. Referred patients have a smaller co-payment . To be registered as referred, you must have a referral letter (via eHealth or in writing) from a GP or specialist doctor. The letter must be available when you register.
As a hospital, we have to apply these rules strictly. The amount the hospital receives is the same for both visits, only the patient's share varies. Applying the 'not referred' rate is in no way a judgement on the need for an emergency visit.
What do I bring to the Emergency department?
- Identity card (eID)
- Referral letter from the GP
- Medication list
- Insurance papers when necessary
Can a companion or family member come along?
It is wise to bring someone you know well. Emergency admission can be stressful and a companion is often an additional source of information for the caregivers. He or she can also take you back home safely after admission.
We do ask you to come with a maximum of two companions or family members. Space is limited and we want to prevent the spread of infectious diseases on the ward.
Companions must stay with the patient and are not allowed to walk around the Emergency department to protect the privacy of other patients.
Can I eat or drink while waiting?
We urge you not to eat or drink anything without consulting the nurse or doctor. Some tests and treatments cannot go ahead if you have eaten or drunk.
Do you have to wait for a long time and get hungry or thirsty? If so, be sure to speak to us so we can check whether an exception can be made.
Why do I sometimes have to wait a long time in the Emergency department?
There are several reasons for increasing waiting times.
Most admissions to the Emergency department are unexpected and some patients need more care than others. As a result, crowding is difficult to predict. Often, the department is quite busy. We use a colour-coded triage system so that patients with immediately life-threatening or serious conditions are helped first.
Sometimes the waiting time increases due to factors over which we have little control, e.g.:
- A doctor or nurse is called away for an intervention with the MUG or ambulance.
- Several patients need the same examination, creating a queue.
- A doctor from another discipline cannot immediately free himself to come to the Emergency department.
- The room you are admitted to is not yet free.
We monitor these external factors as closely as possible and try to inform you as soon as possible if the waiting time increases. We guarantee that patients with life-threatening or serious conditions always receive the necessary care immediately.
I forgot to ask for a certificate during emergency admission. Is it still possible to do so?
Yes. Request your attestation by sending an email to secretariaatspoed@uzgent.be. Clearly explain which attestation you need or attach a scanned copy of the attestation to be completed. A doctor will then fill in a standard attestation from our hospital. We will send this to you via a secure email.
You can also take the attestation to the Emergency department reception yourself. We cannot promise that a doctor will be available immediately to fill it in. You can come and collect the completed certificate later.
Please note: you must request the attestation yourself (this does not apply to minors or incapacitated persons). We are not allowed to give attestations to others, including family members.
Which doctor treats me?
UZ Gent is a teaching hospital. Many specialist doctors in training (assistents) work in the Emergency department. These are graduated doctors who are following additional specialist training in emergency medicine, internal medicine or anaesthesia.
A supervising emergency doctor always follows behind the scenes, consults with the assistants and comes to the patient himself when necessary.
Sometimes a medical trainee can follow along with the assistant and visit you beforehand. These medical students are in the last two years of their training. They listen to your story, carry out an initial clinical examination and help with the start-up of further examinations or treatments. Thus, they gain additional experience and help your treatment progress faster. Trainees never make independent decisions about investigations and treatments. That remains the job of a graduate doctor.
Sometimes we seek the advice of doctors from another discipline. This can be done by phone, but sometimes they come to the Emergency department themselves.