<p>Older female relative just had hip surgery for broken hip. Drs said she could leave hospital for rehab in 2 days. Is this standard care? FWIW a google search seemed to indicate a stay of 5 or so days. Thanks!</p>
<p>MIL age 82 broke hip. Was operated on Tuesday, out Friday morning, into the nursing home for rehab.</p>
<p>Thanks. Makes sense. How long was MIL in rehab, if I may ask? Though I understand this varies with the person’s health status.</p>
<p>My husband had hip replacement surgery about 10 years ago. They wanted to send him HOME after two days. He and his doctors managed to convince the insurance co. that he needed rehab. and he was approved for 10 days at a local rehab facility. If she is going to a rehab facility, they are probably better equipped to do the therapy that is necessary. The goal is to get the patient on his/her feet ASAP.</p>
<p>My husband had surgery at about age 53 and went back to work after two weeks. I told him that his colleagues were going to be ticked at him. Age makes a big difference.</p>
<p>No one wants to do this, but a walker is really helpful for gettingaround the house once they go home. They don’t have to use it forever.</p>
<p>My mother broke her hip a couple of years ago; she was released to rehab a few days later (I am thinking it was more than 2, less than 5) and spent at least 3 weeks at rehab, probably closer to a month.</p>
<p>She was 82 and her mobility never returned to her previous level. She had been getting a bit iffy with her driving skills before the fall, but there was no question afterward that she could no longer drive.</p>
<p>I went home after 3 days – no rehab, just at home. I really liked that. And I had a full hip replacement.</p>
<p>My 80 year old mom just had a hip replaced. She stayed in the hospital 2 nights and then went home. She was very determined to get out of the hospital asap. My dad is very strong and fit so he was able to take care of her at home. She and he were intent on her not having to go to a rehab facility. It has been a lot of hard work for him.</p>
<p>Home health PT chiming in here. It’s not uncommon to leave the hospital quickly. If there’s no need for acute care it’s either home or rehab. Actually, hospitals are wonderful places to get sicker if you don’t need to be there ie. infections. Recovery totally depends on the person. Most people who go in for elective hip replacements recover much faster than those who had a fracture (break) and then need surgery. And, hip replacements generally progress faster than those surgeries that are not hip replacements. Not all fractures lend themselves to hip replacements. A good rehab center will make sure she has all the medial equipment eg. walker that she needs. And, she will very likely need some home health to follow. Good luck and I’d be happy to answer questions along the way.</p>
<p>I really appreciate your comments!</p>
<p>Regarding home care, I know that it’s draining on a spouse. My MIL was a LOT of work for her husband. I think it really drained him in his final years.</p>
<p>This hip problem was a break with surgery, and they are mentioning to her that she ‘might’ be able to go home from the hospital. This seems wildly unrealistic to me, since she lives alone and didn’t get around all that well before the break. Everybody works and can not quit their jobs to take care of her, take her to PT, etc. so I hope going to rehab won’t be a big issue. I hope.</p>
<p>One thing about rehab is that some people take direction from strangers better than they acccept help from family members. </p>
<p>The PT did come right to our home as did the nurse, so there wasn’t any running to appointments. I think the risk of falling going in and out of the house is worse than having someone come in.</p>
<p>I had a total hip replacement a year ago last Tuesday. I stayed in the hospital for 3 days and then went to Rehab for 10. If I could do it again, I would NOT go to rehab. With someone to help, a walker and a nearby potty chair (and painkillers), going home would have been fine. I’m in my 50s and I was back driving within three weeks. I hope your relative does well.</p>
<p>Agree with the walker and a nearby potty chair being great ideas. It can be hard to get to the bathroom quick and my mom’s medicine made her need to go to the bathroom a lot, so a chair by her bed was nice for the first few days. She fought the walker, but it is the easiest thing to use at first and she was glad she had it.</p>
<p>My mom’s bones were more fragile than they thought and her muscle tone not so great (she put this surgery off for a long time), so my dad did a lot of lifting her into bed. She’d sit on the side of the bed and he would lift her into position (she couldn’t cross her legs for a couple of months post surgery). He does aerobics 5 days a week and is very fit, otherwise I don’t know how he could have managed. Still, he didn’t get a lot of sleep at first and that was the hardest part on him.</p>