Hip replacement waiting time

Posted by tmcelree @tmcelree, 5 days ago

I have been waiting for an appointment now for about 2 months and nothing scheduled yet. How long of wait have you experienced from accepting me until you actually got an appointment? Then how long a wait until surgery ? I am no longer able to do normal things due to the pain.

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@tmcelree Two months seems a long while to wait for a phone call, unless you were told in advance that it would take some time.

This could be the reason - For many people, joint replacement is "elective" - not so much whether to have it done as to find the best time to be down for six or more weeks. Often in the autumn, when people have met their out-of-pocket deductible for the year, they hurry to schedule elective surgeries like joint replacements for November and December so that insurance picks up more of the tab. Then you have to consider that doctors and their staffs, like many of us, like time off around the holidays, and finally this year there was some "pent up demand" for surgery in parts of the country due to shortages of saline solution after the hurricane and flood damage in S Carolina destroyed some factories. So it might just be a matter of poor timing when you started the process.

Sometimes it is good to be "the squeaky wheel..." I tore up my shoulder this fall, and I made sure my ortho knew I was in a lot of pain and wanted it done ASAP. When I explained to the surgical scheduler, she looked until she found me an add-on appointment the end of October - she was originally suggesting December!

Now, here it is January, and your pain is getting worse. Have you called the surgeon's office to find out when you might get scheduled? It would be a really good idea to let them know how much pain you have and ask to get your surgery date as soon as possible.

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