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Rapid Recovery success

23 May 2008

Rapid Recovery slashed waiting times for surgery by over 50% at Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust

The North East NHS Surgery Centre at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust, issued new statistics on 24 October 2007 at an Open Day to celebrate the first anniversary of its implementation of the Rapid Recovery® Program.   These statistics show that waiting times from listing for surgery to admission have fallen by 50% (from 26 weeks down to 12 weeks) over the past year. In addition, there has been a decrease in recovery times, an increase in patient satisfaction and an increase in the numbers of patients being treated.

Success
The North East NHS Surgery Centre is one of only a handful of centres throughout the UK to have pioneered thisrevolutionary patient management pathway. Designed to improve quality of care and experiences of people undergoing hip and knee replacement surgery, the programme owes its success to a team of committed people including consultant orthopaedic surgeon Mr. Shankar N Kashyap, and Rapid Recovery Program Coordinator, Sylvia Batey. In pioneering this programme, the team has helped to establish the Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust as a leading referral centre for orthopaedic surgery in the region. 

“The Rapid Recovery Program has contributed significantly to a more efficient use of our resources, creating a greater capacity for the number of patients we can treat,” commented Steve Atkinson, Divisional Manager, Surgical Services, Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust. “The programme has helped us move towards achieving a maximum 18 week pathway from GP referral to surgery, a goal we aim to reach by March 2008”.

 
Patient Satisfaction
Last year, more than 600 people who underwent knee and hip surgery at the centre had access to the Rapid Recovery Program. The average number of days these patients stayed in hospital was reduced from 6.5 days to 4 days (a decrease of nearly 40%). Patient satisfaction also increased as people were educated about the procedure prior to surgery and were encouraged to participate in their recovery and care.
 
Daniel Murray, from Gateshead had his knee replacement surgery on both knees at the North East NHS Surgery Centre, one before and the other after the introduction of the Rapid Recovery Program. He commented, “The whole experience the second time around was much less daunting and the results have made such a difference to my everyday life. With this programme, I was kept informed every step of the way and knew what to expect. Being able to walk away from hospital just three days after the surgery was amazing.”
 
Biomet Solutions
The Rapid Recovery Program has been set up to run in conjunction with the use of Biomet products. Specifically, the Vanguard Knee has been successfully implemented with its Microplasty instrumentation to allow a less invasive surgical approach to aid the Rapid Recovery process of the patient.