Standard of Care – Refreshing Experience – Improving the Standard of Care

He Delivered What He Said Every Step of the Way

I had to share an experience with a family member’s surgeon with you.   This doctor might be changing the way patients are succeeding in their outcomes because details matter in patient care. A family member required double knee replacement surgery.  I was so nervous for them to undertake this because I knew of several people with so many complications and problems post-surgery (at other facilities).

Dr. David Morawski at Fox Valley Orthopedics in Geneva, Illinois is determined to eradicate or reduce complications and minimize hospital stays. Every patient is evaluated individually and an unique care plan written for each person.  He performs as many single knee replacements in their same day surgery center  as possible as opposed to the hospital. (Home the same day; unbelievable.) Double replacements are short one to three day hospital stays.  I want to call the process the Dr. Morawski Way not because it works but it is recognizable by his staff and those at the hospital to provide the best care for each patient.  This includes the sign that he provides your support person to bring to be posted at the patient’s bed.

Atmosphere – the clinic is neat, clean, organized, welcoming and tastefully decorated. They walk new patients from registration to the appropriate clinic area while offering refreshments.

Home Visit – Prior to surgery, Dr. Morawski has a physical therapist visit the patient’s home and assess their needs post-surgery and identify potential safety hazards including removing small rugs.  Information is provided where to rent or obtain necessary assistance.  The therapist checked out every place the patient would walk including the garage and car. We were so grateful because the therapist brought up some good points that we had not considered.

Staffing – Dr. Morawski employs his staff a long time so they know his routines and expectations. His patient care coordinator, Tina, has everyone’s best interest at heart. She lets you know how to contact her so that she makes sure your family member is taken care of expeditiously. Funny, calm, and organized, Tina makes you just feel that everything is going to be okay.  His physician assistant, Scott, is knowledgeable, kind, empathetic and supportive. Nurse Stacy balances everything from the prothrombin clinic to staple removal with ease. If you have a question, she makes sure that someone is going to answer it timely.

Manual – Dr. Morawski gave out a detailed manual for each patient and their support person to read before class. This manual is amazing because it literally charts the patient’s journey from pre-surgery to post-surgery. We referenced this manual at home when we had questions. This manual also contained appointments and medications and we were instructed to bring it to all appointments. This enabled easier scheduling between the doctor’s appointments, physical therapy and prothrombin time checks.

Medications – besides being listed in the manual, we were instructed to fill the prescriptions prior to hospitalization so we did not have to worry about them only caring for the patient.

Handicap sign – they gave us a form for a temporary handicap placard to fill prior to surgery also.

Easy Preparation Day – Pre-op was made as easy as possible. Have MRI if needed again to check status. Come to class. Have blood work in their office if having surgery at their surgery center. Make sure to have dental and primary care physician clearance too. Meet with medical staff and answer final questions on an individual basis. Make sure to give refreshments to patients that were fasting for blood draws.

Education – We were most amazed that Dr. Morawski personally delivered a hour presentation that elaborated on the manual and surgery.  He discussed potential complications with both sincerity and humor. He outlined why he organizes his program to reduce complications even showing a picture of the surgery suit that they wear to reduce infections. Dr. Morawski explained that he has learned what makes patients worry and how to try and prevent that such as offering laxatives so no one is bound up by medications. (I do not know if his class/manual is proprietary so I am not going into full detail but he answered most of our questions before we even asked them.)

There is a second benefit from having class with other people having surgery and meeting their support person. You can encourage each other as you progress through each step, especially post-op therapy. When you are a bit tired and not sure if it just you managing all of this correctly, you do not feel alone. (After week one, the patient becomes more capable of doing things on their own.) You see other patients too at therapy at one, two and three weeks post-surgery and see how well they are progressing. (Yes, there might be a little competition going on there too.) Good camaraderie and cheer abounds.

Exercise – Dr. Morawski wants each patient as strong as possible prior to surgery. He wants them to have practiced their initial home exercise routines PRIOR to hospitalization so they already know it when they come home.

CPM – Some patients come home with a continuous passive motion machine to keep the knees from being stiff and work on flexibility. It is delivered to the house, set up for the patient and a demonstration provided.

Home support – Dr. Morawski carefully assesses each patient to make sure they are strong enough to go home and have appropriate support at home.  The patient needs someone initially helping with dressing, putting on compression hose, icing, encouraging to exercise and use the CPM machine, etc. That is why Dr. Morawski has the support person attend his class to create a successful patient discharge.

Follow Up – you never feel alone because someone from Dr. Morawski’s office or ATI therapy is always there to answer your questions or concerns. Yes, it is scary having this responsibility when you are not a nurse, medical assistant or doctor. Dr. Morawski helped us believe that we could do it together.

I wrote this LinkedIn post because this level of care and professionalism is what reduces medical costs by preventing falls, infections, long hospitalizations, nursing care or repeat hospitalizations. Dr. Morawski is about continually improving the patient experience and learning all of the time. I wish this experience for anyone needing a medical provider.

(I can only speak from our experience and I do not work for Dr. Morawski or any of his affiliates.)

Diane M. Schultz

IOUT4U