A first visit is easier to plan when you separate the online step from the hospital visit. Before travelling, confirm the institution, patient status, department and official confirmation. Then read any more specific instruction issued by the relevant AIIMS centre or department.
This guide does not provide a universal arrival time, counter number or document list because those details can vary and the current evidence does not support one rule for every service.
No account or patient details required
First-visit preparation checklist
Use this as a preparation aid after reading the complete first-visit guide. Your checks remain only on this page and are not stored.
This checklist does not replace institution-, centre- or department-specific instructions.
Before you plan the journey
Confirm these four points:
- The appointment or instruction is for AIIMS New Delhi, not another AIIMS institution.
- The patient is correctly treated as new, existing or follow-up.
- The named department or centre is correct.
- The official confirmation or hospital instruction has been saved.
If any of these points is unclear, resolve it through the relevant guide or official service before travel.
New patient preparation
A new patient should understand both appointment and registration. Save the official appointment acknowledgement, check the department name and read the OPD registration explanation. Be prepared for hospital-side administrative steps even when the appointment was obtained online.
Use only the identity or supporting documents named by the current official instruction. Do not rely on a generic third-party checklist that claims the same documents are compulsory for every department.
Existing patient preparation
An existing patient should keep the earlier UHID, OPD card or relevant AIIMS record available. Reusing the existing hospital identity can help preserve continuity and avoid unnecessary duplicate registration.
Check whether the current visit is a new consultation request or a continuation of earlier care. The correct route may differ.
Follow-up patient preparation
Keep the department's return instruction and earlier hospital record. Follow-up patients should use the applicable UHID or return pathway rather than automatically beginning again as a new patient.
When a centre or department gives a narrower instruction, it takes priority over a general visitor guide for that service. Confirm old or unclear instructions before travel.
What to keep accessible
- The official appointment slip or acknowledgement, when applicable
- Earlier UHID or OPD record for an existing patient
- Follow-up, referral or department instruction already issued
- Only the documents specifically named in the applicable official instruction
- Essential personal travel information kept privately by the patient or attendant
Do not upload any of these items to AIIMS OPD Guide.
Understand what may happen after arrival
The hospital visit may still include record verification, registration or reporting to the relevant service. The exact sequence can depend on the centre or department. An online appointment is not a promise that every physical step or waiting period has been completed in advance.
Read signs and official instructions at the hospital carefully. If you need help, use the contact category that matches the task. Appointment-booking numbers are not general enquiry or emergency lines.
Department and centre differences
AIIMS New Delhi is not a single uniform counter workflow. Department pages can publish their own referral, registration or report instructions. A rule found on one department page must not be treated as an institution-wide rule.
This is especially important when visiting a named centre, specialty service or follow-up clinic. Use the most specific current official instruction that applies to the patient's service.
Travel and location planning
Check the current official location information for the relevant centre or department before leaving. The main hospital campus and specialised centres may have different destinations. Do not assume that one entrance serves every appointment.
Plan enough flexibility for security, wayfinding and any remaining registration steps, but do not rely on an invented universal “arrive X hours early” rule.
If the appointment or instruction is unclear
- Recheck the official confirmation.
- Confirm the patient status and department.
- Read the relevant appointment, registration or UHID guide.
- Use the purpose-specific official contact listed on the helplines page.
- Do not post the appointment slip or patient identifier publicly.
- Do not pay an intermediary who promises priority access.
Emergency situations
This page does not assess symptoms or decide whether a situation is an emergency. AIIMS lists official round-the-clock emergency telephone numbers on its emergency-services page. Use the helplines guide for those verified details.
Printable checklist
The first-visit page includes a browser-based checklist covering institution, route, confirmation, existing record, department instruction, named documents, travel plan and follow-up information. Checks are not saved or transmitted.
A simple day-of-visit plan
Before leaving home
Open the saved appointment or written instruction and check four items: patient name, date, department and institution. Check the building or centre separately. Charge the phone that receives appointment messages, but do not depend on connectivity alone; keep an offline screenshot or printout.
Arrange records in the order they are likely to be used: appointment or referral first, identity document, previous OPD record, then relevant reports. Carry only the medical material needed for the present problem instead of an unsorted bundle that hides the important page.
On reaching the campus
Use the department or centre name to confirm the correct entrance. AIIMS New Delhi is not one single OPD room. RAK OPD, the Extended OPD Building, Surgery Block and super-specialty centres have different locations and may have different processes.
At an official help or registration point, show the appointment or referral and ask one focused question: “Which registration counter is for this department?” After receiving a slip or token, verify the printed department and follow the room or floor instruction.
Before leaving after consultation
Read the clinician's written instructions while still at the hospital. Identify whether the next action is a test, medicine, referral, procedure, fresh appointment or follow-up. Confirm the return interval and department if it is not readable. Photograph or scan the instruction for backup while keeping the original safe.
Accessibility and companion planning
Patients with limited mobility, visual or hearing difficulty, language barriers, cognitive impairment, severe weakness or many records may benefit from a companion. Decide who will hold documents, listen to instructions and where to meet if separated. Do not let an informal helper keep original identity documents or disclose credentials on the patient's behalf.
Allow extra time for movement between blocks. If wheelchair or other assistance is required, seek current official accessibility guidance before travel because availability and pickup points may change.
Food, medicines and tests
Do not fast, stop medicine or change a dose merely because the visit is at a hospital. Follow only the instruction given for a specific investigation or by the treating clinician. Carry routine medicines and a concise medication list. If the patient has diabetes, requires timed medicine or has dietary restrictions, plan the waiting period accordingly.
Common first-visit problems
The appointment is for the wrong department
Do not assume the registration counter can convert it. Use the official correction or help route and keep the confirmation as evidence.
The patient visited before but booked as new
Carry the old UHID and OPD card. Explain the situation at the official registration point rather than hiding the earlier record.
The patient reaches the wrong building
Show the department name to an official help point and ask for the building, floor and counter. Avoid relying only on unofficial directions near the campus.
After the first visit
Create one folder—paper or digital—with the OPD card, UHID, prescription, test orders, reports and follow-up instruction. Add the visit date and department to the file name of any scan. This makes the next booking easier and reduces the risk of choosing a new-patient route again.
Sources and review
Guidance checked on 23 September 2026 against the AIIMS New Delhi appointment, patient-information and emergency-service sources plus current ORS workflow guidance. Exact campus entrances and centre locations remain location-sensitive and must be verified before final publication or image integration.