Danielle Moran, RN, with the Total Joint Program at Tahoe Forest Orthopedics, and I’m talking today about our Total Joint Navigation Team and the unique level of care and support that we offer patients who are having surgery at Tahoe Forest. Preparing for surgery can be stressful, but having an experienced team of clinicians to walk you through those steps can make that process a little bit easier.
We’re seeing a growing number of patients in Truckee and the surrounding areas who are in need of total joint replacement, so we put together a team dedicated to helping these patients get scheduled for surgery sooner and have good outcomes.
A bit about our program. Our surgeons are specialty trained and offer advanced techniques in knee, hip, and shoulder replacement, as well as leading-edge treatments in pain management such as Iovera. Iovera is a procedure that provides pain relief by freezing nerves in the front portion of the knee, and this can reduce the amount of pain medications that some patients will need after surgery.
Our surgeons are also using state-of-the-art equipment such as the VELYS robot, allowing for digital precision and accuracy in surgery, which can lead to quicker recovery times and enhanced mobility of that new total joint. With innovations in practice like these, our patients are now up within just a couple of hours of surgery and walking, and many are going home that day.
With more and more patients going home the day of surgery, it became really important to build a program that provides patients and their caregivers with the education and tools they need to be safe and successful. These good outcomes start well before surgery. When a patient is referred for total joint replacement, they’re immediately in connection with our team as well as Tahoe Forest’s own pre-surgery clinic.
We have an awesome group of clinical and non-clinical staff who are trained in every aspect of helping patients prepare for surgery. Our nurse navigators work closely with providers and anesthesia to optimize a patient’s health ahead of surgery and really tailor that plan for surgery and recovery to that patient.
Our patients have direct access to their navigation team every step of the way, which allows them to actively participate in their care. Total joint replacement can be life-changing, so patients really need to have complete confidence in their surgical team, and our navigation program plays a huge part in making that happen.
I’m Danielle Moran with Tahoe Forest Orthopedics.
