Do you still need to self-isolate before surgery if you've had the vaccine?

[littlequestion]

I've got to decide whether to have a minor op (day case) that was postponed last year. By the time I have it, I'll have had both jabs. Does anyone know if you still need to self-isolate before surgery if you're fully vaccinated? Thanks

My mum had to but I don’t know if it’s a national rule or trust by trust.

In my trust, yes. By the time your surgery happens? Who knows.

Yes.

You follow the instructions to the letter, because it matters for infection control procedures at the hospital.

But, not all hospitals do things the same way. So it might be worth checking with yours, and if they still require isolation before the procedure then you'll need to defer again.

Vaccination does not remove the need to isolate, and it is extremely important that itis observed when it's for the safety in a hospital

Yes.

DD had an operation recently. She lives with us and no one asked if we'd been vaccinated, she was just asked to isolate on her own. She had to have a PCR beforehand.

DD was in the same position as you, been waiting for a year. Here they seem to be fitting day cases in as and when there's a bed - she only had three days notice, so only had that time to isolate - it wasn't too bad other than sorting out work.

Yes. There have been no allowances anywhere for people who are vaccinated.

Yes but it's only 72 hours of isolating.

Thanks all. If I isolate from my family but then DH has to drive me to the hospital is that OK? Assuming we both wear masks with windows open? Or will he need to isolate too if he drives me?

Personally when I had surgery recently I didn't isolate from family, as we live in a small house, and it was just not practical. I'm sure that will be fine. He could maybe try to minimise going out for those three days as far as possible?

Yes, DD has day surgery next Friday, she has to have a PCR test at the hospital the Tuesday before. We've also been told we all have to isolate until the Friday so that she is admitted on the 'Green' admissions criteria. (Green = negative, Amber = not tested and red = positive)

My Dad has recently had surgery. Him and my Mum had to isolate for two weeks.

We were talking about this earlier as DH needs to contact BUPA. We couldn't isolate from each other, it's just not possible. Does that mean I'd have to isolate with him? I'm not moving out!

My Dad had to isolate for 14 days this month, even though he’d had both jabs.

My husband had to isolate for three days for a procedure but the rest of didn’t have to isolate.

DD was told to isolate. She spends a lot of time in our front room, so easy to distance. We tried to keep on top of hand washing and keeping surfaces clean. I drove her to hospital for Covid test and operation with mask on and windows open.

However, she's had a minor complication since operation and has had to go back four times within two weeks, so we haven't been able to isolate.

Inpatient NHS surgical ward staff here.

Yes, you must still isolate if you’ve had the vaccine.

If one member of the household has to isolate for surgery, the whole household must isolate. Our green ward was flooded with Covid over Jan/Feb from patients who self-isolated themselves but thought it was unfair on their families to make them stay home. Repeat - the WHOLE HOUSEHOLD must isolate. If you’re told by your hospital that the whole household doesn’t have to isolate, they’re wrong, sorry, because it makes no sense, does it? Yes, it’s completely impractical but there is zero point in one person ‘isolating’ with everyone else coming and going. If the whole household isolates, it therefore resolves the problem of someone you live with driving you in for the op - they can drive you in as they’ve also quarantined.

My DH has a minor op in June. We are very lucky and have a granny flat he can SI in as we don’t want to keep the DCs off school and I obviously can’t WFH. He will drive himself in on the day of the op. His DM (lives alone, bubbled with us) will drive me to the hospital the day after - I’ll drive him and his car back home. If we didn’t have the granny flat he’d have booked a hotel room and ordered food deliveries.

What I don’t get is the three day self isolation period for minor ops, yet 10 days for major ops. Surely they should all be 10 days? If a patient unknowingly contracts Covid when they present for their pre-op PCR on the Monday (that PCR comes back negative), dutifully self-isolates Tuesday to Thursday, remaining asymptomatic but steadily becoming positive, then has their op on the Friday, they’ve brought Covid onto the ward haven’t they? If anyone can enlighten me on the rationale of this I’d like to know...

@ElphabaTheGreen

Inpatient NHS surgical ward staff here.

Yes, you must still isolate if you’ve had the vaccine.

If one member of the household has to isolate for surgery, the whole household must isolate. Our green ward was flooded with Covid over Jan/Feb from patients who self-isolated themselves but thought it was unfair on their families to make them stay home. Repeat - the WHOLE HOUSEHOLD must isolate. If you’re told by your hospital that the whole household doesn’t have to isolate, they’re wrong, sorry, because it makes no sense, does it? Yes, it’s completely impractical but there is zero point in one person ‘isolating’ with everyone else coming and going. If the whole household isolates, it therefore resolves the problem of someone you live with driving you in for the op - they can drive you in as they’ve also quarantined.

My DH has a minor op in June. We are very lucky and have a granny flat he can SI in as we don’t want to keep the DCs off school and I obviously can’t WFH. He will drive himself in on the day of the op. His DM (lives alone, bubbled with us) will drive me to the hospital the day after - I’ll drive him and his car back home. If we didn’t have the granny flat he’d have booked a hotel room and ordered food deliveries.

What I don’t get is the three day self isolation period for minor ops, yet 10 days for major ops. Surely they should all be 10 days? If a patient unknowingly contracts Covid when they present for their pre-op PCR on the Monday (that PCR comes back negative), dutifully self-isolates Tuesday to Thursday, remaining asymptomatic but steadily becoming positive, then has their op on the Friday, they’ve brought Covid onto the ward haven’t they? If anyone can enlighten me on the rationale of this I’d like to know...

Do support bubbles have to isolate too? My DF is due to have an operation soon. Him and my DM are my support bubble, but I only see my DM (she comes to visit me, he stays at home).

Our green ward was flooded with Covid over Jan/Feb from patients who self-isolated themselves but thought it was unfair on their families to make them stay home
I don't know about anyone else but I find this truly shocking that people are either unable to understand the instructions or just unable to think that the rules apply to them and the result is a hospital ward full of Covid.

Our green ward was flooded with Covid over Jan/Feb from patients who self-isolated themselves but thought it was unfair on their families to make them stay home. Repeat - the WHOLE HOUSEHOLD must isolate.

That's awful. If DH does need an op I would obviously do so. I was asking as a friend was told she had to isolate from her husband as well which would be impossible for us.

DH is hoping to wait until things are more normal before doing anything though as he needs me to go with him for any appointments as he's partially deaf and struggles even more at the moment because of masks. Hopefully isolating won't be a thing by the time he goes as well!

Do support bubbles have to isolate too?
My DF is due to have an operation soon. Him and my DM are my support bubble, but I only see my DM (she comes to visit me, he stays at home).

You basically can’t have someone coming in an out of your house who is mixing with the wider community in any way. It renders the self-isolation exercise pointless. If you have one person in your support bubble who lives elsewhere, you either don’t see them for the duration of SI, or they strictly SI in their own home if you have to mix with them (you should be going nowhere other than your house, your car, their house - no taxis, no public transport) or they move in with you for the duration.

Your DM and DF would both have to SI, even if it’s just your DM visiting you. You either need to not see either of them while they isolate, or all three of you isolate if you have to maintain contact.

I was asking as a friend was told she had to isolate from her husband as well which would be impossible for us.

My DFIL was also told this prior to his op last year, but that was on the assumption that DMIL was going out and about. If they’re both self-isolating (which they both did, especially as DMIL had to drive him in to hospital as he’d had his licence removed for the thing he needed the op for), they shouldn’t need to SI from each other. Many people who need ops often need physical assistance from others, otherwise they might not need an op!

Thanks @ElphabaTheGreen, that's a really good point about needing assistance! If DH does need an op I'm happy to isolate with him but there's no way I'm moving out! My friend was told that, even if they isolated, they had to have separate beds and bathrooms - we have neither, the same as many people!

YY @PinkSparklyPussyCat We wouldnt be able to do it either. One bedroom flat.

This will also disproportionately affect poorer people. It wont end well either. I can see the future headlines now "i locked down to save the NHS and now cant get the op i need because i cant SI due to where/how i have to live"

Rightly or wrongly there is going to be a lot of resentment felt towards the NHS . I understand the rules are the rules but not everyone can follow them or afford to follow them.

@MercyBooth

YY *@PinkSparklyPussyCat* We wouldnt be able to do it either. One bedroom flat.

This will also disproportionately affect poorer people. It wont end well either. I can see the future headlines now "i locked down to save the NHS and now cant get the op i need because i cant SI due to where/how i have to live"

Rightly or wrongly there is going to be a lot of resentment felt towards the NHS . I understand the rules are the rules but not everyone can follow them or afford to follow them.

My dad needs an op and I know already my mum wont self isolate... can't afford it. He doesn't work and she is self employed. She will lose money and clients. Although, there is a chance they might not to isolate at all. She has a friend who had an op in the same department recently who just had to have a negative test. No isolating.

If you need help on isolation within a household, browse through the 'shielding chat' threads.

None of our households were set up for isolation and sleeping separately etc, any more than yours. But shielding lasted for a total of 33.5 weeks during the period mid March 20 to start April 21. It can be done, and when there's a medical imperative, it must be done

@nether DH and i sleep seperately because of his disabilities. He sleeps in the living room. But we only have one small bathroom.
What really fucks me off is on the social housing threads in the past if you dare to have a moan about how small the place you live in is you get told that you are entitled and selfish and should be grateful. NOW tenants have to do the impossible and somehow make a small place into Doctor Whos Tardis.

Fairly recently i mentioned on a thread that Covid proves there has to be changes in housing where places are just too small. Want to take a guess what the reply i got said?