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You and your orthopedic
physician decide joint
replacement surgery is
right for you.
Your physical therapy
will begin within
hours of your surgery.
Attend
“A Joint
Step Forward”
Your Centegra joint navigator
will help coordinate doctor
appointments, lab work and
pre-registration.
Your Centegra joint
navigator will discuss
your after-surgery
care and what to expect.
Your Centegra joint
navigator will coordinate
your discharge and after-
surgery care, ie. skilled
nursing, home health and
medical equipment.
5
877-CENTEGRA
/
GETHEALTHY.CENTEGRA.ORG
G
etting a knee or hip replaced is a big
decision—even when you know it
could free you from pain and help you be
active again. You’ll likely have many
questions. For
HealthToday
, David
Shinherr, DC, executive director of
orthopedics and neurology at Centegra
Health System, answers some questions.
Q:
Is it painful?
A:
There’s always some degree of pain
with this type of surgery. But at Centegra’s
Hip & Knee Replacement Center, our goal is
to keep the pain at a level you can handle—
with the latest medicines and techniques.
Q:
How long will I be in the hospital?
A:
Expect to be with us for three days
after an uncomplicated joint replacement.
During that time, our team will provide
care that’s tailored to meet your particular
needs. That customized care actually
begins before your surgery: one of our joint
navigators will be your personal guide,
making sure lab work gets done, meeting
you at the door, settling you into a private
room and coordinating your post-op care.
It’s like having your own concierge.
Q:
What will physical therapy be like?
A:
It usually starts with range of motion
exercises, sometimes on the day of surgery.
Over the course of your stay, your physical
therapist will help you sit up, walk, get on
and off the commode, and use the stairs.
Also, before you go home, an occupational
therapist will help you with some of the
initial challenges of daily living with a new
hip or knee, like putting on socks.
Q:
When can I drive again?
A:
Most people ask this. Your surgeon will
be able to tell you when you’re ready, but
as a rule, many people are back to normal
activities—including driving—four to eight
weeks after surgery.
EXPERIENCE COUNTS
As with any type of surgery, hip or knee
replacements are best done by experienced
surgeons. The highly trained orthopedic
teams at Centegra have replaced thousands
of joints—756 of them in the last year alone.
Their experience enables them to provide
gold-standard care close to home.
Concerned about transportation to and
Move ahead
Learn more about our personalized,
state-of-the-art joint replacement services
Steer toward your new life. Visit
centegra.org/hipandknee
. Or call
877-CENTEGRA (236-8347)
for details on the Centegra Hip & Knee
Replacement Center or to sign up for an information session.
from the Centegra Hip & Knee Replacement
Center? Don’t be. “We have a shuttle service
to pick you up and take you home,” Shinherr
says. “It’s part of our commitment to
hands-on, individualized care at every level.”
An ounce of
prevention
Sometimes, you
can stop pain
before it starts.
Go to
gethealthy
.centegra.org
.
Centegra
walks you
through it