What Inspires Patients to Seek Surgery and Face the Journey Towards Recovery? Part 1 - How it all started!
When we first began our STREAMD journey almost 3 years ago, we became fascinated with discovering what inspires patients to seek surgery, and then endure through the arduous recovery. We started with total knee and hip replacements because we were interacting with them on a daily basis at that time. These were busy clinics and operative days treating patients with seemingly similar problems. However, while discussing their debilitating hip or knee pain, we were immediately drawn to the impact of their pain and disability.
Photo by Kid Circus on Unsplash
It was the next part of the conversation that struck us --- each patient had a different reason to seek surgery --- their stories ranged from heart-breaking to absolute joy! It was during those conversations that we observed a change in the demeanor in the patient’s behavior. They sat up straighter, they became more animated, their eyes lit up, and a smile would appear! So there it was … this is NOT just another “knee replacement” or another “hip replacement” --- this is a life-changing event that presents with fear, but is encased with hope for much more to come! So that got is thinking -> What inspires patients to face this challenge and conquer it!
In a world of joint replacement surgery with well-established protocols, patients are often provided standardized teaching of the same risks, benefits, and instructions regarding their surgery and recovery. But, little is personalized or tailored to their individual concerns, fears, motivations, and hope. Lets face it, the protocols surrounding a joint replacement have become routine to the clinical staff. What would happen if we simply asked patients to write down what inspired them to show up today, face the possibility of surgery and recovery process? The results of this … were simply AMAZING and EYE-OPENING!
So what inspires them?
Is everyone inspired by the same thing (to just simply get rid of the pain)? Is it really that simple?
How can we use these inspirations to provide even better patient care?
How can we better engage our patients with this new information?
And so many other thoughts…
Please join us over the next few weeks as we share what we have learned about what inspires our patients and how we can use this information to better engage/aid them in facing the surgery and conquering the subsequent recovery!