Hospital Bystander Service
in Sri Lanka.

A hospital bystander is a trained attendant who stays with a patient in hospital — providing personal care, emotional support, and family liaison during day and night shifts. In a government ward that is a role the hospital already assumes a relative will fill; in a private room it adds one consistent person alongside the nursing. BetterHands places bystanders in both.

Hospital bystander cover is priced by shift length rather than by staff role. A 6-hour shift covering morning to evening is LKR 4,500 per shift, a 12-hour shift (7am to 7pm, or 7pm to 7am) is LKR 5,500 per shift, and continuous 24-hour cover is LKR 6,500 per day. These follow a one-time annual registration fee of LKR 20,000, and cover is booked for a minimum of 3 days. The rate does not change with the hospital: a government, teaching or base ward costs the same as a private room, in every district, with no travel supplements. Cover in a state ward is arranged around that ward's own bystander-pass rules. A free placement assessment is provided before the first shift.

Both. BetterHands places attendants in government, teaching and base hospitals as well as in private hospitals, at the same rate — the price follows the length of the shift, not the hospital it is worked in. The two jobs are different in practice: a state ward is staffed on the assumption that a family attendant is present, so our attendant fills a role the ward is already counting on, while in a private room the nursing is already covered and what we add is one consistent person across the whole stay. Placement in a state ward is arranged around that ward’s own rules on attendants, which typically allow one pass per patient — we work within those rules rather than around them, so tell us the hospital and ward when you enquire.

In the state system: National Hospital of Sri Lanka, Colombo, Colombo South Teaching Hospital, Kalubowila, Colombo North Teaching Hospital, Ragama, Sri Jayewardenepura General Hospital, Kotte, Apeksha Hospital, Maharagama, Teaching Hospital Karapitiya, Galle, District General Hospital Negombo, District General Hospital Gampaha and District General Hospital Nagoda, Kalutara. Among private hospitals: Asiri Central, Asiri Surgical, Nawaloka Hospital, Lanka Hospitals, Durdans Hospital, Hemas Hospitals, Ninewells Hospital, Joseph Fraser Hospital and Asiri Hospital Galle. If your hospital is not listed, contact us with the hospital and ward — the list above is where we place most often, not a limit.

A BetterHands bystander handles feeding, hygiene, positioning, monitors and reports changes to ward nurses, provides emotional support, liaises with family, manages personal belongings, and accompanies to procedures within the hospital. They are trained in basic patient handling and clinical observation.

Yes. For urgent Colombo admissions, we can typically arrange a bystander within 4–8 hours. Contact us immediately with the hospital name, ward, and patient details. Surgical, medical, and ICU step-down wards each have different requirements — we match accordingly.

Yes. A bystander provides personal care, support, and monitoring — not clinical procedures. A private nurse performs clinical nursing tasks. Many families use a bystander for personal care with a nurse for specific clinical needs. BetterHands provides both — coordinated from one team.