After your Surgery
After your surgery, you’ll be moved back to the ward (after local anaesthetic) or a recovery room (after general anaesthetic or epidural), where you’ll be told how the operation went.
You may feel hazy or groggy as recover from the general anaesthetic. A nurse may give you oxygen (through tubes in your nose or a mask) to help you feel better. It’s common to feel sick or vomit after you’ve been given general anaesthesia. Your nurse may offer you medicine to help with sickness. You may also have a sore throat and dry mouth.Your blood pressure will be taken regularly. This will either be done by a nurse or by using an automatic cuff that squeezes tightly at regular times. Your temperature will also be taken.
You’ll always have some pain after having surgery. Tell your nurse as soon as you start to feel any pain so they can give you painkilling medication as soon as possible. This will stop it getting worse (medication can take 20 minutes to start working) and improve it.
The sooner you start to move around, the better. Lying in bed for too long can cause some of your blood to pool in your legs. This puts you at risk of a blood clot. If possible, doing some leg exercises can help prevent a blood clot. These may be as simple as flexing your knees or ankles and rotating your feet. You may be given special support stockings to wear after surgery to help your blood circulation. Your nurse or doctor will explain how you should use these. Some people are given an injection to thin the blood slightly to help reduce the risk of clots.
What Happens After?
You will be transferred to the ward with an observation package, depending on the procedure you underwent. Clear post-operative instructions will be given by the surgical team for the team looking after you. You may have wound drain, urinary catheter, IV lines attached to your body which will be removed later.
Before you leave the hospital, you may (depending on the type of operation you had) have an appointment with a physiotherapist and /or occupational therapist. They’ll be able to advise you about any exercises you need to carry out and assess your mobility and any other issues related to your discharge process.
You’ll also be given advice on how to care for your wound, and any equipment you may require, such as dressings, bandages, crutches and splints, and maybe a dose of painkillers.
Your discharge from the hospital will be determined by:
- How quickly your health improves whilst you’re in the hospital
- How much support you’ll need after you return home