A U G U S T 2 0 1 8 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y. N E T • 1 9
Sending hip replacement
patients home soon after
surgery requires plenty of
planning and an honest
assessment of your facili-
ty's capabilities. Address
these factors to ensure
you're prepared to make
the transition.
• Patient selection.
We've developed an algo-
rithm that helps us identi-
fy patients who are good
candidates for outpatient
surgery. In short, our cut-
off age is 70, because older
patients usually have comorbidities and may have unidentified
medical issues. Patients with breathing problems from chronic
pulmonary obstructive disease, sleep apnea or a high body mass
index are not suitable candidates; neither are patients with heart
disease, previous heart failure or issues related to uncontrolled
blood pressure.
• Equipment needs. Total joint replacements are equipment-
intensive and instrument-specific procedures, and many different
trays of materials are needed and must be prepared and steril-
ized. You'll want to have duplicates of every instrument and
PRE-OP PLANNING
• TOOLS OF THE TRADE Hip replacements require several instrument
trays and plenty of specialized equipment.
Are You Ready
To Add Total Hips?
Pamela
Bevelhymer,
RN,
BSN,
CNOR
