MIL having a hip replacement, advice please

[ladydepp]

75 yo MIL has been booked in to have a hip operation in June. She needs to have both hips done so this is the first one. She lives alone about an hour's drive from DH and me and her other DS.

I am just wondering how much help she is going to need? I am thinking after she is out of hospital (5-7 days?) she should come and stay with us for a bit, rather than going back home alone straight away? She has an upstairs bedroom and a shower over a bath so not sure how she will cope with the stairs and getting into the shower on her own. She does have other relatives who might be able to help out.

I am also wondering how likely this operation is to be postponed now that we have been given a date? We are needing to change our summer holiday plans and I will be very annoyed if it ends up getting put off!

Can anyone give any advice based on their experience with a relative having a hip replacement? Many thanks in advance!!

shameless bump

Hi, my mum had a hip replacement.... From what I can remember she was in hospital about 4 days. Likewise I wanted her to stay with me but she wanted to go home so my sister stayed with her for a week. She only has a toilet upstairs and a shower in the bath too and I think she sat on the edge and spun herself round to get in and out. But she was about 20 years younger than your MIL so don't know how your MIL is doing mobility wise. She had a big cushion for the sofa, raised toilet seat, crutches, a grabby thing to pick things up from the floor, a stick thing to get surgical stockings on and off but she really struggled with this and it was a godsend to have someone to help do it. Sorry I can't think of much else but she did manage fine at home despite my misgivings. I can ask her tomorrow for her tips. As for the op being cancelled it was NHS but done at a private hospital so maybe less likely to be changed? It went ahead on the date set, no problem. Hope all goes well for your MIL. If she does go home I think it would be wise for her to have relatives to help out. A morning and evening shift maybe...

thanks so much onlyusernameleft (great name!).

Unfortunately DH or I staying with her is not an option (we have 3 dc's) and I don't reckon BIL will want to stay with her either. So if she needs help she will have to stay with us or get someone else in.

My worry is that BOTH her hips are dodgy and so is her back, so I am not sure how that will affect the recovery on the first hip replaced. She also has high blood pressure and gets very stressed easily, it will be interesting to see how she copes.

I think I will plan for her to stay for a week with us after the hospital and then see how it goes. We go away 4 weeks after her op so I hope she will be independent by then!

The hospital should arrange for an occupational therapy assessment to enable adjustments to be made for discharge ie. Blocks to raise chair and make bed appropriate height. A community nurse should visit to help with dressings etc and a programme of physiotherapy. If she is going out of area she would need to have this organised for your home. Alternative is to find a local nursing home who would take her short term.

Lizs - thanks. I was trying to tell DH tonight that his mum will need more than a few cups of tea and a bouquet of flowers to recover from this op. Hopefully he will get his head round it soon as he may well need to take some time off work. I hope we can avoid a nursing home.

My biggest worry is stairs, I am wondering if we should be setting up a bed for her in her (rather small) living room? She at least has a loo and a kitchen on the same floor, so could wait for someone to come round before attempting to go upstairs and bath or shower.

My mum had a hip replacement a few years ago and had 5 days in hospital, then my dad looked after her for a few days then I went over intending to stay a weekend to help out. I ended up staying 2 weeks as they needed the help.

Mum was able to get up the stairs as this is one of the things the physio works on before they leave hospital but its all the other things like helping her in and out of bed, changing compression stockings, showering etc. she needed help to do all these things so needed someone there 24/7.

The one thing I wish I had overruled her on was getting a suitable armchair that was high enough in the seat and had good arms for helping her up. She insisted on using a comfortable squashy armchair and struggled in pain getting in and out. If she gets her other hip done I'm buying her a chair or renting one from a mobility company, I think it really affected her recovery.

OK this is the bread and butter of my work but I have had several glasses of wine
It is a fantastically successful op
She should be better than before, give her that expectation. A new hip should improve mobility although she has the op to get over
An OT assistant should visit if it is an NHS op
They will raise loo and chair if poss. The knee should not bend beyond 90 degrees until the muscle has knitted together. Usually 12 weeks
Stairs is good exercise but 2 bannister rails is preferable