Patient Information
Bon Secours Hospital
I have a full time permanent appointment at the Bons Secours Hospital Cork which has 343 beds and caters for up to 18,000 admissions and 29,000 outpatient attendances per year. The new 75 million euro investment will translate to a state of the art oncology facility and surgical day unit which will allow me to deliver swift, high quality care to my patients in a centre of excellence and innovation.
Medications
- I aim to keep patients on their regular medication in so far as possible
- I almost never stop Asprin, even when performing skin grafting
- If patients are not permitted to stop their Warfarin for 72 hours they will require admission preoperatively for bridging Heparin
- The College of Anaesthetics advise that all women stop the OCP a minimum of 6 weeks prior to any elective surgery
- Patients undergoing surgery greater than 90 minutes who are admitted on the day of surgery may require 40mg of Clexane or 3,500 units of Innohep the day before surgery. They will be advised of this on their clinic attendance
Health
Smoking
Research has shown that smoking doubles your risk of complications with anaesthesia and surgery. Benefits have been shown if cigarettes are stopped for even 6 weeks before surgery as the blood supply to the skin and oxygen levels in the blood both increase.
Dietary
Eating a sensible balanced diet and taking regular moderate exercise helps general well-being, and stands to you undergoing surgery.
Vitamin C, Zinc and Vitamin E have all been proven to reduce inflammation and promote wound healing and can be safely taken before and after an operation. Vitamin E may affect the body’s ability to clot so it should not be supplemented to above the recommended daily allowance.
Most Irish people find it a struggle to maintain a healthy weight. It has been shown that both low and high body mass indices/ BMIs are associated with increased surgical complications. If you would like some help before surgery to stabilise or improve your weight we would be delighted to help you at the Bon Secours. Unfortunately certain operations cannot be performed at high BMIs. Also your health insurance provider has guidelines about what BMI is required by them for a specific surgery before they will cover it.
Post Op Showering
Bacteria live on everybody’s skin so it is important that after surgery you keep your skin clean and dry to prevent the bacteria level from rising and causing an infection. You may not get the area operated on wet for 48 hours but then I recommend showering every day (if you just have steri-strips/paper tapes) and drying the tapes with a hairdryer afterwards.
If you have a dressing on your arm you can have a shower providing your arm is held above your shoulder and out of the water, If you have a dressing on your leg then you need to have a bath to wash instead.
Complications & Risks
All surgery has consequences and some may have complications.
Consequences of surgery include:
- Pain
- Swelling
- Bruising
- Some temporary loss of function
- Scarring which will be permanent
Complications include:
- Bleeding
- Infection
- Delay in wound healing
- Clots in the legs or lungs
- A wide red itchy scar (hypertrophic scar)
- A thick purplish red scar (keloid scar)
- Other complications specific to the type of operation you have
Fees & Health Insurance
The consultation fee is payable at the time of your appointment. You may pay by cash, cheque or credit/debit card.
Most surgeries are covered by your health insurance provider. I can check prior to your operation to make sure you are covered.
If you do not have health insurance you can have surgery at the Bon Secours Hospital as a cash paying patient and we can advise you of the cost of your operation, anaesthetic and hospital bed prior to surgery.
The cost of your surgery covers all your postoperative care and follow up clinic appointment(s).