A hospital can be the place that saves your life and the place that makes you feel the least in control. We sit down with Dr. Monique Nugent, a hospitalist and author of *Prescription For Admission*, to name the exact moments when patients and families get lost and what to do about it, even when you’re exhausted, in pain, or scared.
We get practical about navigating a hospital stay: how to understand the plan for the day when schedules are fluid, why a paper-and-pencil checklist can sharpen your questions, and what “success” really looks like after discharge. Dr Nugent explains why discharge planning is often harder than people expect, from equipment and medication access to insurance limitations and the real-world logistics that can trigger avoidable readmissions.
We also unpack healthcare equity in plain language. Equity isn’t about giving everyone the same thing; it’s about giving each patient what they need based on their body, abilities, language, and lived experience. And we end with a challenge you can act on today: have the uncomfortable advance care planning conversation with your loved ones, so no one is forced to guess under pressure later.
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Contect to Dr. Monique Nugent using the following platforms:
Website: https://drmoniquenugent.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Dr.MoniqueS.Nugent
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_happiest_hospitalist/
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/moniquenugent-mdmph/