Active Wait programme

Week 11 – Preparing for Surgery

Prepare well

If you are well prepared for surgery, you will give yourself the best chance of a successful recovery from surgery. Good preparation while you are waiting for surgery is:

• Moving the joint regularly and keeping active
• Engaging in strengthening exercises
• Managing body weight
• Eating a well-balanced diet
• Stopping smoking, if you are an active smoker
• Reducing or avoiding drinking alcohol, especially if you are over the recommended units of alcohol per week.

Prepare your home

While you are waiting for your joint replacement, you may need to rearrange your home or install aids that will help you get around. This is also important for after surgery as it will be difficult to move around a few weeks after your surgery while you are recovering.

Making sure trip hazards like rugs and cables have been removed to prevent any falls that may cause an injury. It may also be worth ensuring your most used items are within easy reach. Also having some prepared meals in the freezer and having plenty of food in the cupboards for after your surgery can be a great help, particularly for the few days after your surgery.

Help from family and friends

The recovery period after your surgery will be a difficult time for you. Asking family and friends for support for anything you may need means you will be able to focus on your recovery. You may need help with child or pet care, shopping and picking up prescriptions or household jobs. Think of what responsibilities you have before your surgery and ask for help from your family and friends.

Joint school

About a month before your surgery you will be encouraged to attend Joint School which gives you the opportunity to speak to the hospital staff and find out everything you need to know about your hip or knee replacement. Joint School will cover

• Information about your joint
• How to prepare before surgery: Exercises to do, preparing your home, involving your family
• Coming to the hospital: where to go, when to arrive, what to bring
• Your recovery in hospital: What to expect
• Managing pain after surgery: medication and other techniques
• How long will you be in hospital? How will you know when you can safely return home?
• Living with your new joint: What will it look like? What will you be able to do and not do?

It is really important that you attend the Joint School and you are encouraged to ask questions, however simple you feel that they are. It is known that people who take part are less worried about their surgery and do better after the procedure.

Your weekly exercises

Click the links below to see this week’s exercises. You only need to select one level. Start on the foundation level, and if you find it easy click on the intermediate and advanced exercises for a more difficult version next time.

• Foundation – bed and chair exercises
• Intermediate – chair and standing exercises
• Advanced – standing exercises