Following a referral from your General Practitioner (GP) your Orthopaedic consultant will see you in an outpatient clinic. If you and your consultant decide that an operation is the best treatment, your consultant will then refer you to the centre by sending us your details.

 

Our Advanced Practitioner nurses are in attendance at some outpatient clinics, and will therefore carry out your preassessment immediately; you will also be given a welcome pack and a home assessment questionnaire which you will need to return to the centre as soon as possible

 

Our schedulers will contact you well in advance of your operation to discuss mutually acceptable dates for your surgery; if you have not had your preassessment your scheduler will arrange this for you. You will be sent confirmation of these dates in writing together with the welcome pack and home assessment questionnaire which you will need to return as soon as possible.

 

During the pre-assessment your fitness for surgery will be assessed by a specially trained nurse. This will include taking a medical history, including current medication, a heart tracing, a blood test, urine test, MRSA screening and an x-ray if required.

 

 The home assessment forms are then sent to the discharge team; they will check through these and contact you prior to your admission if necessary. Many patients manage perfectly at home without the need for additional support at home but should you need support from the community; the discharge team will liaise with you and your local primary care trust.