Sister With Recent Hip Surgery

[juliean33]

I'm looking for some advice regarding assisting my sister on our trip in 30 days. She will be having hip replacement surgery next week...but insists the doctor said she can still make our trip.

We're staying at the OKW and renting a car.

She will most likely still be using a walker and/or wheelchair.

I have absolutely no idea where to begin with any special arrangement or assistance for her.

We're being very brave as my sister and I are taking my 4 kids (3, 6, 11 & 15).

I'm hoping to make this trip enjoyable and relaxing - so anything anyone can share with me ahead of time would be appreciated.

Are the Disney folks helpful in these situations?

Thanks in advance for any tips,
Julie

 

[Sue & Co.]

Given how exhausting WDW is your sister will certainly have trouble managing to walk all day. I suggest that you hire her an ECV, I'm sure one of the others wil shortly post the links that they have. This would be better than a wheelchair as it would enable her to remain independent and also if you are not used to it pushing a wheelchair all day is hard work. She will also need to pay attention to the warnings as some of the rides can be quite bumpy.

Sue

 

[snubie]

You will need an ECV. At the time of your trip she will be only 3 weeks post op. She will more than likely still be using a walker for ambulation. She will not be able to manage to walk with a walker the distance that WDW requires.

Rent an ECV off-site and have it delivered to the resort. We are renting from Care Medical for my FIl for our trip next week.

One other thing to consider is a raised toilet seat. If she is having a hip replacement then she will have a list of precautions she will need to follow in regards to what she can and cannot do with the new hip. Example: not bending the hip beyond 90 degrees, not crossing your legs at all. Regular toilets force you to often bend your hip more than 90 degrees.

Check with her MD for any precautions and also check with her Physical Therapist for any recommendations.

Make sure you have all her prescriptions with you and her MD's phone number, just in case.

Stacey

P.S. I am a Physical Therapist and deal with people in similar situations often.

 

[vhoffman]

I've had both hips replaced, so I know what I'm talking about--FORGET IT!!! I don't care what the doctor told you. Drs often give misleading information insofar as the recovery time. 30 days after this type of surgery, you're at great danger for dislocation. You must manuever just so in order to avoid popping that hip out. You must be very careful getting up and down from a seated position, including toilets. What about the bed? We raised our bed up on cinder blocks so I wouldn't have to bend so far getting up and down. You will need a walk-in shower, raised toilet, and even that only takes you so far. How do you plan to get to WDW? My surgeon told me he had a patient who flew too soon, against his advice, and her hip dislocated on the plane. Those seats on the plane are very low and small. Also, how does she plan to use the bathroom while traveling? She couldn't fit into the airlpane toilet with a walker or crutches. If you drive, well, not every handicapped bathroom stall is really accomodating. I didn't even have my staples removed until almost four weeks. Plus, remember, that's really MAJOR surgery. She won't have much strength or energy for at least a few months. Take my advice--postpone it for another time. If you want, you can pm me for more info about the recovery after a hip replacement. Its not the time to be going to DisneyWorld!

 

[phillybeth]

Less than 30 days post-op for a hip replacement is a bit unrealistic IMO. My dad had a double knee replacement and his doctor told him not to travel more than 100 miles for 3 months post-op. And that was after 4 days in the hospital and 2 weeks in-patient therapy with no complications. My dad was a healthy, relatively young guy and it took him months before he felt anywhere close to 'normal', much less a Disney vacation.
And don't forget all that new hardware is going to set off ALL the airport security- my dad has the card from the surgeon but he has still been searched. Repeatedly.

 

[vhoffman]

Another thought, how's she going to go on the rides? Just transferring from wheelchair into the rides would be dangerous at that point. Most of the rides have seating that is low and difficult to get in and out from. Then, assuming she's in the ride, what then? The force of many of the rides is enough to cause that hip to dislocate. Even if the hip doesn't actually dislocate, it could slightly loosen and come just a little out of place. Not enough to send her screaming with pain to the ER, just enough to not let the hip heal in a fully correct position. Then she gets to live the rest of her life with a hip that isn't positioned correctly. Every little move after a hip replacement surgery must be done with extreme caution, otherwise, it could either dislocate or not heal properly. I wasn't even allowed to bend over to tie my shoes for 2 months. If her doctor approves such a trip, I'd have serious doubts about the doctor! How much experience has he had doing hip replacements? I'd get a second opinion and take a second look at the doctor!

 

[SueM in MN]

I agree with the others that postponing the trip might be the very best option. Three weeks after surgery is very soon to be traveling. One of my friends had hip replacement surgery a few years ago and was hardly even leaving her house (except to go to therapy) 3 weeks after.
Especially since you have 4 children. The oldest 2 are probably old enough to fend for themselves and help you with the younger 2, but a 3 yr old and a 6 yr old are still going to need help from mom.
Here's a link to a page from Deb Will's website. It has pictures of the ride cars, so you can get an idea what some of them are like. Some require a big step down to get in. My FIL has not had hip replacement surgery (he should have though) and he is in a lot of pain from climbing in and out of the different ride cars.
There are some attractions that she can stay in the wheelchair or ecv for. Here's a link to a page from the official Disney website with information about Mainstream Lines, rides you can do in the ecv and touring with mobility disabilities. If you do go, your children will need to understand that she can only go on a limited number of rides/attractions at each park. Is that going to cause problems?

If you do still decide to go, you should call and ask for a wheelchair accessible villa at OKW. If you are staying on points (or renting points from a DVC member), MS can help you with your requests. If your trip was arranged thru Disney (not DVC), you should call WDW Resort Special Reservations:
(407) 939-7807
(407) 939-7670 [TTY]
They can help you get an appropriate room and the equipment she'll need - including a raised seat toilet and an ecv.
You can also rent those things thru these full service medical equipment companies:
Care Medical:
http://www.caremedicalequipment.com/
Phone (407) 856-2273 • Toll Free U.S and Canada (800) 741-2282

Walker Mobility:
1-888-726-6837
www.walkermobility.com

Colonial Medical
http://www.colonialmed.com/about_cms.html
(800)747-0246

 

[juliean33]

Thanks to everyone who is posting advice regarding my sister's surgery.

She's still confident she'll be able to go. She's bringing along her raised toilet seat. We're renting a scooter and she wasn't planning on going on any rides.

With the two different age groups of my kids, she planned on sitting with the younger ones or exploring with them while the older kids are on rides.

The idea about a handicapped unit at OKW is a good one. I'm hoping they have that or at least a first floor available.

My sister is one tough cookie. She's researched the technique the surgeon is going to use and talked to others who have had this type of surgery. I'll have to let the decision up to her.

If she can't make the trip, we'll make do. While the thought of me taking the four kids myself makes me want to take a nap! .... I'm sure I could do it. But we haven't seen my sister in a year and it sure would be nice.

 

[AZKathy]

Just a thought, what about postponing the surgery until after the trip? I agree with everyone; this surgery is a big surgery and the recovery will be tough postoperatively. You can still rent the EVC for her and she will probably be better off going on the trip prior to her surgery.
Anyway you choose, my best to your sister for a speedy recovery.