Home Health Care after a Knee Replacement Surgery
Total Knee Replacement (TKR) surgery is at times deemed as the only way out of the end stage arthritis, alleviating pain and restoring normal function of your knees. However, one should remember that finding the most qualified surgeon in town is definitely not the only responsibility that needs to be fulfilled in this case. The healthcare systems should advise rational home-based care paths for the patients. The family members of the patients, on the other hand, should make the most of the affordable home-based physiotherapy and rehabilitation by following the aforesaid instructions.
The Importance of Home Health Care
It has been very rightly pointed out that one must prepare their homes before the patient undergoes knee replacement surgery in India. You might as well need to bring about a few changes to the fundamental setup of your home to facilitate quicker recovery. Early hospital discharge post surgery is associated with reduced costs but you must be careful enough to ensure that the home environment is ‘medically’ conducive as well.
Thanks to our uber-hectic cubicle bound lifestyle, it, at times, becomes necessary to opt for home health care services. The presence of a home nurse means that your loved one is well cared for even when you are not around. Remember that the first few days can be very difficult for patients because they cannot move around or do things on their own. It’s the caregiver who performs crucial duties like administering medicines, helping the patient move around, conducting physiotherapy sessions and providing the emotional support necessary for quicker overall healing.
Is your Home Ready to Receive the Patient?
Coming back to the changes in the home setup we had talked about, make sure that you have the following arrangements ready before the patient comes back home:
- You necessarily do not have to invest in beds typically used in hospitals but make sure that mattress to be used by the patient is firm
- Sufficient number of pillows for the elevation of lower leg
- Ice packs for knee
- A bed which isn’t too high or low off the ground
- Writing materials (if you want to convey anything to the home healthcare provider when you are not around)
- Comfortable sleepwear
- Appropriate toiletries
- Bandages and dressing changes
- Clean and wrinkle-free linen
- Walker or crutches
Physiotherapy
Physiotherapy is a crucial part of the recovery process. After a knee replacement surgery in India, some patients may even be required to walk for 30 minutes for twice or thrice a day. Then there are additional exercises that pave the way for faster recovery. It is quite natural for the patients to find walking or exercising painful. If they feel like giving up without trying then remind them it’s quite normal to feel a little bit of pain initially and that systematic rehab helps to recover faster. Once again, here also the presence of a caregiver at home helps. After, all they are used to deal with the emotional upheavals better than us.
