UK NHS Hip Replacement. What to expect

This is based on UK NHS practice Male aged 70 and does not reflect on other countries.

Although I carried out a huge amount of research prior to my hip replacement, at the end of the day it is down to the Surgeon what happens. I had been diagnosed with severe osteoarthritis of the right hip and had to admit that something must be done. When my GP, my wife and myself finally made the decision to go ahead I was pleased to find he had me admitted to a private hospital under the NHS choices scheme. I can only say that first impressions were very good when compared to our local hospitals that carry out this operation. I received a full package from the hospital including an appointment only 10 days after my GPs phone call.

The Interview with the Surgeon:

The surgeon was extremely well qualified and carries out  over 100 hip replacement operations a year. He was full of confidence and this transferred to me. He was surprised that I asked so many questions as to the approach, the type of material used, size of new ball etc but did answer them. He asked me what dates were suitable for me and the ball was set in motion.

The Assessment:

This was 2 weeks prior to the operation and took the usual blood and swabs to ensure I was not carrying the "Black Death" into the hospital with me. I was given free (ex gratis) a raised toilet seat, a grab stick and a long shoe horn. I was told what to expect and treated very well.

The Admission:

The day of admission (13:00hrs)and we arrived at the hospital with a suitcase packed for 5 days. No food after 11:00hrs in the morning but drinking water up to 13:00 hrs. Funnily, all of the lockers are ground height and no one after a hip or knee operation could take items in or out of their lockers. After unpacking my wife left and also left the car in the car park rather than take the journey back on her own. She then took a 3 hour bus journey.. NHS please note; no parking charges at a private hospital.

The Operation:

At 16:00hrs I was taken to surgery. It took a bit to get me under as I am resistant to drugs but I woke up in my bed at 18:30hrs with my legs straddled apart and a large plastic wedge between them keeping my bones at the correct angle. The Auxiliary Nurses were wonderful, much better than the "I am better than you because I have a degree" university trained nurse that was in charge. They could not do enough for their patients while the registered nurse would not do anything. I was made comfortable, asked if I wanted some dinner (no appetite after an operation). I called my wife and told her all went well and to put away the insurance policy as she would not need it.

I have noticed that the type of approach, anterior vs posterior depends on the surgeon. A lot of women on here seem to have the anterior approach which is interesting as it does not offer the surgeon as easy an approach to the joints as the posterior but does make recover quicker. All of the discussions on the topic state that the anterior approach is less effective with regards to securing the new hip joint than the posterior so I wonder if people are given the choice or whether the surgeon just makes the decision. Perhaps it is a country specific thing. I do not know.

Recovery:

There were 4 other patients in the NHS ward. The longest had been there 9 days and the shortest 4 days. They all were having trouble getting over the pain and walking on crutches despite a first class physio. This scared me.  My first night went bad after an argument with the registered nurse who insisted I had to have a catheter before she went off duty and pass some urine. I said I wanted a cup of tea and this would enable me to pass some into a bottle while laying flat on my back. Her attitude was that she was not  there to make tea so I pointed out that tea was a diuretic and would help. One hour later and urine passed. Nurse please note for future patients!

Physio arrived at 10:00rs and within 30 minutes I was walking with the aid of a Zimmer frame. By the time my wife visited me I was on crutches and walking around the hospital. The physio was very good, strict but good. At 16:00 hrs just after my wife had left, the physio asked me to take the steps and hill tests and then said I was good to go. Checked my blood results and X rays and all was good. I called my wife to tell her to pick collect me in the morning just as my surgeon arrived to see if I felt good enough to go home. There is a secret here to getting early release, it is listen to your physiotherapist, they know what they are doing. Do not wallow in self pity and ask for more morphine, it does not make you better. Accept you are in pain, you have just had invasive surgery. Once home you brighten up immediately. Having four other whining patients in the room crying out at night for pain killers helps for a quick exit as well.

At Home:

Your leg will be swollen badly. The surgeon will have been moving it into positions it was never intended to be in to gain access to the various joints. You will be off your food for a few days. You will have trouble sleeping on your back. You will have constipation for a few days. Eat plenty of fruit and drink a lot of water. Wear those awful TED stockings and take your anti blood clotting tablets. Within a few weeks you will be fit enough to go out with the aid one crutch only. Sore muscles, pain and trouble sleeping are part of the recovery. Depression is normal and will pass.

I am now at 3 weeks and about to go out shopping with the wife. I look forward to the trips out as it exercises my leg better than anything else. My wife has set me targets and my next one is a bath. How I long for one. Only one week to go. I am lucky in having an ex Matron (a real Matron trained in Glasgow in the 70s, not a paper qualified one) as a wife and she knows exactly how to treat me and it is not with TLC. She is bossy and accepts no excuses. she views this as a minor injury and continually tells me that she has seen and dealt with a lot worse than this so stop complaining and be a man....It works.

Bottom line:

There are many more operation worse than a hip replacement. Technology is marvellous and these new ceramic and poly hips will last for decades. Pain and depression is to be expected but it will get better day by day. there will be set backs but progression will occur. The one thing I always try to do is to stop taking pain killers as soon as possible. They are just chemicals that are masking the problem. They do not cure anything and you can become addicted to them. Think of the pain you were in prior to the op and compare. It is now a different pain but one that will go away. Finally, talking and writing about it help you and others. The more knowledge as to how others are affected helps us all. We are not alone, it just seems like it at times.

1 like, 11 replies