Patients and Visitors: St. Joseph Medical Center

Valet

$5 fee per vehicle, per visit for valet parking service. $2 fee per vehicle, per visit with a disabled placard. The valet parking locations are:

Main entrance

• 5 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Monday through Friday
• Will retrieve vehicles until 7 p.m.

Emergency entrance (co-located with Heart and Vascular entrance)

• 6 a.m. to 4 a.m. the following day
• Monday through Saturday morning
• Will retrieve vehicles until 6:30 a.m. (Monday through Saturday morning)

Self

Several self-parking locations are located around and near the hospital; each is well marked with signage and within easy walking distance of the hospital and outpatient center. Parking is also available in the outpatient center̠s garage, which can be entered between I and J streets, immediately west of the outpatient center.

Additional assistance

If you have a non-emergency need, such as locating a parked car, accessing a locked parking facility or for valet retrievals on Saturday and Sunday, call Security at 253-426-4888.

Patients and visitors may quietly use personal cellular phones inside the hospital so long as the devices do not interfere with patient privacy or the hospital̠s healing environment.

A phone is located in each patient̠s room. For local calls, dial 88 and then the phone number. For long-distance calls, dial 0 to reach the operator who will place the call for you. All long distance calls from patients rooms are toll-free.

There is a pay phone in the main lobby of the hospital.

Patients and visitors with laptops and other wireless devices will find fast, convenient and free broadband service in the Emergency Services department, cafeteria and select waiting areas.

Users should note the connection is not encrypted and users assume all responsibility for access.

Visitors to the hospital may purchase snacks or hot meals in the cafeteria, located on the Ground Level. The cafeteria is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week.

Virginia Mason Franciscan Health hospitals and clinics provide auxiliary aids and interpreter services to ensure that our patients and visitors have effective communication. If you have a preferred language other than English or if you are deaf, hard of hearing, or deaf blind, you can access language and interpreter services at no charge. Learn more about our language and interpreter services.

Lost and found items are taken to the hospitals Security Office.

Virginia Mason Franciscan Health Foundations build relationships that inspire charitable giving. Our volunteers help us fulfill our mission of providing quality, compassionate health care to the community.

It's easy to pay your Virginia Mason Franciscan Health bill online. Visit billing resources FAQs to learn more.

253-426-4101

Whether you’re coming in for an X-ray, treadmill stress test, or daily injection, you’ll need to check in at the registration desk. We need to know you're here, and if applicable, update your patient information to keep it current.

Bring with you:

• Your insurance card
• A photo ID (e.g., driver’s license)
• Emergency contact information
• Current employer's address and phone number
• If your regular physician is located out of the area, his/her contact information
• In addition, you may be asked by the department to which you're being admitted to bring in X-ray films or other medical records
• If you have a Living Will or Advance Directive, bring a copy so that it is made part of your medical record

If you’ve been sent to the hospital from your physician’s office, you must register before being seen in the Emergency Services department. If your physician has sent you to the hospital to be admitted to any other department, keep in mind that we need orders from him or her before that admission can be completed. If you or a loved one is arriving by ambulance, the clerk can handle your admission, or a family member can provide us with the information we need.

While you’re in the hospital, your care may be coordinated by a hospitalist, a physician who specializes in the care of hospitalized patients. St. Joseph Medical Center has a team of hospitalists to provide care 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Your hospitalist will work closely with your personal doctor to ensure your care is coordinated and your provider will be fully informed about your progress during your hospital stay.

Preparing for your visit

If you have an appointed time for a test or procedure, please arrive 15 minutes early or as instructed by the scheduling staff in order to avoid delays. If you’ll be going home following a procedure, you’ll need to arrange for someone to drive you home. If staying overnight, you may choose to bring your own toiletries, but please leave valuable items (jewelry, cash, credit cards, etc.) at home.

Please be prepared to list all medications and herbal supplements you take as well as previous surgeries, resulting complications and problems related to an anesthesia, medications or allergies.

Each patient room has a telephone and TV.

There is no charge for local calls; however, the hospital does not provide free long-distance phone service. All long-distance calls from our patients’ rooms must be collect or charged to the caller’s home phone number or credit card. Cell phones may be used inside the hospital so long as their use does not disrupt patient care or the care environment.

• Patient Rights and Responsibilities, Interpreters, Organ/Tissue Donors, Patient Safety
• Patient Rights Frequently Asked Questions
• Patient Discounts and Fiinancial Assistance
• Patient Satisfaction, Advocates and Concerns, Ethical and Religious Directives, Living Will, Service Animals
• Durable Power of Attorney Form
• Privacy Notice
• Medical Records
• Virginia Mason Franciscan Health Policies

When you entrust your care to us, we strive to provide care in the safest environment possible. If you have a concern about patient safety, quality of care or other problem, we encourage you to first discuss them with your physician or ask to speak with the manager of that area. 

253-274-7650

A pharmacist is on duty in our hospital pharmacy 24 hours a day to fill the pharmaceutical needs of our inpatients.

Learn more about Virgnia Mason Franciscan Health Pharmacy and Home Medical Supply, on the St. Joseph campus (in the Medical Office Building, 1608 South J Street on the second floor, sky bridge level). The pharmacy is open from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday (closed 12:30-1 p.m.). It serves the public as well as hospital patients and employees.

Our professionally trained chaplains are available to provide emotional and spiritual support and honor what matters most to you through compassionate listening, crisis intervention, grief and bereavement resources, and patient advocacy. Chaplains provide respectful spiritual and emotional care to people of all faiths, beliefs, and values. Chaplains are available on weekdays from 7:30 a.m. to 11 p.m., and on weekends from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

To request a chaplain visit, speak with the bedside nurse or call the Spiritual Care office 253-426-6735.

The chapel is located on Level 1, just off the hospital’s main entrance. This space is set aside for quiet reflection and prayer for patients, visitors, and staff of all faiths. It is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The Bereavement Support Program has been established to assist those family members who have lost a loved one while they were a patient at our Virginia Mason Franciscan Health hospitals. Learn more about the program and find support group offerings.

Due to safety and infection control issues, these items are restricted in the following areas:

• 5 C: no flowers or balloons
• 6 C, D: no flowers (Mylar balloons OK)
• 10 A, B, C, D: no flowers (Mylar balloons OK)
• 11 C, D: no flowers in glass containers or balloons with strings
• 12: no fragrant lilies; other flowers and Mylar balloons OK
• 14: no fragrant lilies; other flowers and Mylar balloons OK
• NICU: no flowers (Mylar balloons OK)

We restrict plants and flowers in patient-care areas where patients are highly immunosuppressed such as those with cancer or who are recovering from a transplant. Please do not bring latex balloons into any Virginia Mason Franciscan Health hospital facilities.

Patient and family web pages are Internet-based tools that enable patients or their families to build web pages to keep family and friends updated on developments in the patient's condition and treatment.

The web pages are easy to access and navigate. They can display photos and information, and allow visitors who have been invited to leave messages for the patient.

The links below will take you to websites that allow you to create free patient web pages:

CaringBridge

Our patient stories speak volumes about the compassionate care we provide to patients and families. See how we’re making a difference and helping people live longer, healthier lives.

Valet

$5 fee per vehicle, per visit for valet parking service. $2 fee per vehicle, per visit with a disabled placard. The valet parking locations are:

Main entrance

• 5 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Monday through Friday
• Will retrieve vehicles until 7 p.m.

Emergency entrance (co-located with Heart and Vascular entrance)

• 6 a.m. to 4 a.m. the following day
• Monday through Saturday morning
• Will retrieve vehicles until 6:30 a.m. (Monday through Saturday morning)

Self

Several self-parking locations are located around and near the hospital; each is well marked with signage and within easy walking distance of the hospital and outpatient center. Parking is also available in the outpatient center̠s garage, which can be entered between I and J streets, immediately west of the outpatient center.

Additional assistance

If you have a non-emergency need, such as locating a parked car, accessing a locked parking facility or for valet retrievals on Saturday and Sunday, call Security at 253-426-4888.

• Visitation hours are from 9 a.m. - 9 p.m.

  • Visitors must be at least 12 years old
  • Not more than 2 visitors at a time are allowed in the nursing units. Others must wait on the first floor in a designated lobby.
  • The charge nurse is the only person who can authorize an exception to the number of visitors per patient on the floor at a time.
     

• Family Birth Center/NICU Visitation
  • FBC may have two support people at a time per patient. Only one support person may stay overnight in postpartum.
  • Children who are members of the birthing family household may visit during designation visiting hours with adult supervision during antepartum and postpartum admissions.
  • NICU will continue to have 24 hour visitation for the birthing parent and support person, with a maximum of two visitors at the bedside at a time. 

Exceptions to this policy are at the discretion of the care team.

After-hours Visitation

• All visitors arriving after 9 p.m. must enter through the Emergency Department.
• After-hours visitor requests are on a case-by-case basis and must be authorized by the charge nurse.
• Only two visitors are allowed per patient during after-hours visitation on all floors.
• All visitors who have been authorized to stay after 9 p.m. must go to the Security Booth in the Emergency Department to receive an after-hours visitor identification sticker.
• The charge nurse will call the security lead @253-625-4132 and inform him/her of the authorization for the patient to have visitors after 9 p.m.
• In certain circumstances, additional visitors may be authorized to visit as follows:
  • Must be authorized by the charge nurse.
  • Only two visitor stickers will be issued at one time.
  • The additional visitors will be taken to a designated waiting area. Security will escort visitors to designated waiting areas.
    • If the patient is in the tower, the designated waiting area is located in the surgery waiting room.
    • If the patient is in the south pavilion, the designated waiting area is located in the Heart Center waiting room.
  • Once the two visitors have returned back to the designated waiting area, security will allow two more visitors to visit.
  • Security will monitor visitors from the designated waiting area.
  • Any visitor without a sticker past 9 p.m. will be asked to leave.
• Visitors are strongly encouraged to wear masks while in our facilities, however, they are not required.

Visitors are welcome at St. Joseph Medical Center during our visiting hours. View our Visitor Information page for additional information

View our Accommodations & Amenities page for area hotel options and more.