 Provided by Clinician 1
I am one-week post-op for a rotator cuff repair of the left shoulder. Having nursed a previous injury for about 15 months, my wonderful PA told me two weeks ago, in no-uncertain terms, “It’s TIME...you’ve held off long enough.” Two prior steroid injections and PT completed, and I could not abduct or externally rotate enough to get by day-to-day without pain...much less sleep comfortably at night.
And so, after a frantic scramble to arrange surgery around my boss’ vacation schedule, and re-schedule my own patients, I had my first experience with general anesthesia, a nerve block, and being at the mercy of others who completely controlled my fate. I had hoped for the lesser surgery of “cleaning up” the known calcification...but ended up with a complete repair of the entire rotator cuff.
So...instead of my hopeful one week in this sling, I now look forward to six weeks of confinement. Four weeks of passive ROM physical therapy, followed by active ROM P.T. Boo-yah.
Actually, other than the initial night after the nerve block wore off (WORSE than labor, let me tell you, IMHO), I think I’ve done really well, pain-wise, and ROM-wise. My physical therapists are happy with my progress after one week, and Tylenol works to supplement the stronger pain meds.
So, what lessons have I taken from this experience? Many.
1.The first lesson is easy, and a reminder of something I already knew: everyone plays a crucial role in the delivery of health care. It doesn’t matter if one is the surgeon, PA-C, pre-operative, peri-operative, or post-operative nurse, anesthesiologist or anesthetist, technician, nurse aide, etc. One really appreciates every person’s effort, a smile, instructions, and yes, comforting words, when undergoing any scary or unknown procedure.
2.Privacy is crucial. The staff at the surgical center went out of their way to keep patients’ business private. However, I did note on my comment form that there were a few areas they may want to note in the future as potential privacy issues, e.g. surgeons discussing post-op findings with patients when other patients are but a curtain away. It made me realize that any last-second discussion with my patients should NOT be done in the hall at check-out, but back in the room.
3.Most staff are NOT used to being thanked. I see this a lot, but apparently, in the OR realm, this is even more common. A simple “thank you” goes a long way. We all know how WE feel when a patient expresses his or her gratitude.
4.Addressing the family with the patient is paramount. The patient will have very little recollection (thank you, Mr. Versed) of certain events, so making sure that the family understands everything is essential. Thank goodness my husband was there for the post-op instructions, as he remembered EVERYTHING. This, too, holds true in the outpatient setting.
I will be back to work on Monday, 10 days after the surgery, as ready as I can be for the usual busyness of the office. I hope to remember these lessons, as readily as I wear that sling, as I care for my patients.
Kim Spering is a family nurse practitioner who currently works at Brndjar Medical Associates, P.C., a family practice in Emmaus, PA. Her past experience includes the fields of medical/surgical ICU, open heart/trauma ICU, labor and delivery, nursing education, nursing supervision, and as a nurse practitioner in both family practice and OB/GYN settings. She currently serves as a NP preceptor for her graduate school alma mater, DeSales University, as well as for local baccalaureate programs. She is passionate about patient education and helping patients understand that they are ultimately responsible for their own health. She also firmly believes that the public needs to be educated on the value of NPs and PAs in meeting the health care needs of the next decade and beyond. In her free time, Kim enjoys family vacations with her optometrist husband, Mark, and her two sons, Matthew and Connor.
The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
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