Cori, I'm not sure I can answer some of the bigger questions you have there but before you get the cell phone you should check with the hospital to be sure cell phones work in the hospital rooms. The hospital I was in right after the end of my treatment has something internal they use that blocks cell phone frequencies except in certain outer hallways. I couldn't use my cell from my room. They did give you a regular phone line to call out on, though, for a few bucks a day.

Nelie