When 88-year-old Beverly Campbell needed a total hip replacement after a fall during the coronavirus pandemic, her son, Frank knew it was a race against time to get his mom’s surgery. Hospital policies were changing by the day and he feared it would be postponed. Fortunately for Beverly, one of our orthopedic trauma surgeons, Dr. Vilas Saldanha , was able to perform a total hip arthroplasty just two days after meeting her!
Following surgery, Frank was able to spend a couple of days with his mother in the hospital before they stopped allowing visitors due to the pandemic.
“When your parents get older, they become like your child, and it felt as if I was leaving my child in the hospital to fend for herself,” Frank said.
Dr. Saldanha and his physician assistant, Lauren, were able to fill that void and step in to support their patient and her family by providing constant, daily communication to Frank.
“Family members are generally the biggest advocate for their loved one in the hospital,” Frank said. “Dr. Saldanha and Lauren went above and beyond to advocate for Mom because we couldn’t be there.”
When it was time for Beverly to move from the hospital to the rehabilitation facility to finish her recovery, Frank was forced to helplessly watch from the parking lot as she was loaded into the transportation vehicle.
For the past few weeks, he’s been able to communicate with his mom through FaceTime and text, which are both very new technologies to Beverly.
Coronavirus has quickly changed the way orthopedic surgeons care for patients after surgery. Family members have been forced out of hospital rooms and rehabilitation centers. And now medical providers, like Dr. Saldanha and Lauren, are filling the void. Dr. Saldanha sees the effects this will continue to have on his patients in the hospital.
“Communication has always been an important part of the doctor-patient relationship, but when family members aren’t able to be in the hospital with their loved one after surgery, you realize how imperative it is,” Dr. Saldanha said. “The bond between doctors, patients and their families has strengthened as we face these uncertain times together.”
We’re happy to report that Beverly is on her way to a full recovery.
