Regions Hospital Trauma Intake Family Checklist

Built for the First 48 Hours

Why Families Need a List

Regions Hospital at 640 Jackson Street in Saint Paul is a Level I trauma center for both adults and children — the highest designation there is. Trauma intake moves fast, and it should. The doctors and nurses have their checklist. This one is yours.

Nothing on this page is medical advice. Every question about care, treatment, or condition belongs to the medical team. What a family can control in those first chaotic hours is logistics: who to ask, what to write down, and what to keep. That record matters later — for the family, and for any injury claim that follows.

Print this page before you head in. For entrances, parking, and visiting basics, the firm's Regions navigation guide covers the building itself.

Step 1

What to Bring

Travel light and leave valuables at home. Bring the things that answer the questions staff will ask you.

• ✓ Your photo ID — plus the patient's ID and insurance card if you have access to them
• ✓ The patient's medication list, or at least the name of their pharmacy
• ✓ Any health care directive or power-of-attorney paperwork the family already has
• ✓ Phone and charger — hospital waits run long
• ✓ A notebook and pen, or a notes app you'll actually use
• ✓ A short list of family members to update — and pick ONE person to send those updates

Step 2

Who to Ask For

Big hospitals have a person for almost every problem. Families lose hours because nobody told them the titles to ask for.

• ✓ The charge nurse on the unit — ask how often updates come and who gives them
• ✓ A hospital social worker — help with lodging, meals, and family logistics during a long stay
• ✓ An interpreter — ask any staff member about the hospital's interpreter services; don't settle for translating medical news yourself
• ✓ Patient Relations at 651-254-2372 — the office for when you can't get information or don't understand a decision
• ✓ The main hospital line, 651-254-3456 — for anything you can't sort out in person

Regions serves families in many languages, and so do we. The firm's language assistance page explains how attorney communications happen in Spanish directly, and in other languages with qualified interpreter support.

Step 3

What to Write Down

The record of what happened starts now, and memory under stress is unreliable. Date everything.

• ✓ Date and time of arrival, and which unit the patient is on as they move
• ✓ Names and roles of the staff you speak with, with the time of each conversation
• ✓ What you're told about the plan — in their words, not your summary
• ✓ Where the patient's belongings went — ask for the property bag; clothing is often cut away during trauma care, and damaged items like shoes or a helmet can matter later as evidence
• ✓ The unit's visitor rules, so the rest of the family isn't guessing
• ✓ Questions as they occur to you — a running list beats a blank mind at rounds

Step 4

Records and Billing Requests

You don't need to collect medical records during intake. You do need to know where they live, and to keep a copy of everything the family signs.

• ✓ Ask for a copy of any form the family signs — consents, financial paperwork, anything
• ✓ Medical records requests go through the HealthPartners release-of-information line at 952-993-7600 (weekdays) — confirm current hours with the hospital
• ✓ Insurance and financial assistance questions: 651-254-4791
• ✓ When bills arrive later, request the itemized bill, not the summary statement
• ✓ Keep every piece of paper the hospital hands you in one folder — sorting comes later

Before the patient leaves the hospital, read the firm's discharge paperwork and lien guide — it explains the forms you'll be handed on the way out and why they matter to an injury claim.