Before your surgery, Tom will advise whether your surgery will be a day stay or over night stay. You will not be able to drive for 24 hours after a general anaesthetic so will need someone to take you home. With the exception of joint replacement surgery most procedures are day stay cases. Patients who have shoulder replacements typically have a one night stay, hip replacements one-two nights, and knee replacements two nights. If you stay over night you will be seen by a Physiotherapist on the ward to ensure you are safe to go home, and to receive early rehabilitation information.
Surgery may be performed using General Anaesthetic, Spinal Anaesthetic, Regional Block, Local Anaesthetic or a combination. The Anaesthetist will typically contact you before hand to discuss their preferred option, any specific risks, and give pre operative medication advice. Occasionally investigations are required before surgery to make your Anaesthetic safer.
For inpatient stays this is generally provided on the ward after surgery. However the majority of Physiotherapy and rehabilitation occurs in the weeks following surgery through community providers. We encourage you to have this arranged prior to your operation to avoid any delays, as the outcome of surgery is often dependent on early post op therapy.
In the weeks before surgery avoid getting any abrasions or cuts, particularly on the operative limb. If there is a skin infection we will usually postphone your operation, so if in doubt please contact us in advance and will provide advice. We recommend gentle scrubbing of the area having surgery with a chlorhexidine based body wash the night before your operation to minimise infection risk.
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