Hartlepool has been leading the way in hip replacement surgery – becoming the first centre in the Tees Valley to perform daycase hip replacement procedure.
The first of four pilot day case hip replacement surgeries that took place in August 2021. The procedure sees the patient attending hospital, receiving a hip replacement and being discharged home the very same day.
Consultant orthopaedic surgeon Manju Ramappa led on bringing the procedure at the University Hospital of Hartlepool.
He said: “Patients would rather be in hospital for as little time as required. It means they can spend the night at home in the comforts of their family with familiar home environment. There are many benefits to performing the surgery this way.
“It speeds up recovery times, reduces the risk of hospital acquired infection and also reduces the risk of blood clots as patients tend to be more mobile at home.
“However, at the same time we will ensure there is no compromise in the quality of patient care provided. Patients will still be getting the same pain relief at home. They will have checks as usual by our medical, nursing and physiotherapy teams to make sure they are safe for discharge. If at any point we feel they are not safe for discharge, we will keep them in the hospital overnight.”
Suitability for daycase hip replacement
Manju continued: “Not all patients will be suitable for daycase hip replacement procedure. They will be assessed for fitness at the initial visit in my clinic. If deemed fit, I will discuss this procedure. Then it is up to the patient to decide if they want the hip replacement as a daycase or not.”
Our homeward team will ensure patients have full support both before and after surgery at home. They will also ring them at 24 hrs after surgery to check on them. Patients will also be given a 24/7 helpline number which will be answered by one of our arthroplasty ward nurses.
Raymond’s story
Raymond Howard Robinson (known as Sam by friends and family), 66, from Eaglescliffe, was the first patient to have the procedure. He said: “I feel things have gone really well and my pain levels are have been fine. I’ve already been sat up and walking with the help of the team physiotherapist.
“I previously had a knee replacement in 2017 and my other hip replaced in 2019. And on both occasions, I had to stay in hospital for three to four days. So finding out this time that I could be in an out in one day was just brilliant news. Getting to recover from the comfort of home rather than in a hospital bed is a huge bonus.”
Asked what he was most looking forward to once he left hospital, Sam replied: “A good cup of coffee, a nice home-cooked meal and all my creature comforts around me. I’m definitely most looking forward to getting back to gardening, which is a hobby I love.”
Mr Ramappa said: “We’re really pleased that today’s surgery has gone well and the hope is that following the next three surgeries we can roll daycase hip replacement out further across the entire Trust.
“This is a really exciting opportunity to transform hip replacement for our patients in the future – improving patient safety and getting them recovering from the comfort of their own home much sooner.”