Gift Ideas for Hospital Visits

When you visit someone in the hospital, bring a gift to help them feel better.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images

Spending time in the hospital is never easy. Hospital stays often make people anxious, stressed, bored and lonely. Not only do they have to deal with staying in the hospital and the loss of privacy and independence that entails, they are also recovering from an illness or operation. When you visit someone in the hospital, bring a gift to help them take their mind off of the situation.

Comfort Items

Being in the hospital can be physically uncomfortable for a person. He likely spends most of his time lying in bed on the scratchy sheets used by most hospitals, so bring a soft comforter and fluffy pillows for the patient to enjoy. Many hospitals also require their patients to wear hospital gowns so that nurses have easy access for tests, so another great gift option is a fluffy bathrobe and slippers to wear when he gets up from bed so that he is a bit more comfortable.

Oftentimes, people have to stay in the hospital after having a procedure or when they are recovering from an illness. While they wait to be discharged from the hospital, many people get bored with just sitting around. For a child, bring gifts such as puzzles, coloring books or a hand-held DVD player or gaming system. Adults might enjoy a variety of books, magazines or movies. For someone who will be spending a very long time in the hospital, consider purchasing a laptop. Many hospitals have free high-speed Internet access, and a laptop computer will not only help her stay entertained, it will allow her to stay connected with her friends and family.

Hospital food can get a little boring. Bring him a gift basket full of snacks that he can enjoy during his stay. However, don't bring gifts that his doctor might not want him eating, such as greasy potato chips or sugary candy. There are lots of healthy, tasty snacks that his doctor would likely approve. Bring fresh, seasonal fruits, such as apples, strawberries or watermelon. Include salty snacks, such as assorted nuts, pretzels or pita chips. Granola bars, fruit juice boxes and dried fruit are other snacks that people in the hospital will likely enjoy as a break in the monotony of hospital food.

While insurance likely pays for most of the medical-related costs associated with a hospital visit, there are lots of other costs that he and his family would likely incur. Give him a gift card for gas so that his wife can use it when she drives back and forth visiting him. Maybe other family members might be staying in a nearby hotel, so a gift card or a monetary gift could help offset those costs. Purchase a gift card to a nearby restaurant so that his family members can get out of the hospital and enjoy a meal.