Preparing for Elective Surgery
Booking a Surgery: Once you have agreed to surgery after your initial consultations or follow up, you will be placed on our surgical waitlist.
Your surgery can be booked as a day surgery at either Don Mills Surgical Unit or The Scarborough General Hospital.
- Your surgery may be booked as inpatient surgery at the Scarborough General Hospital.
- You will be contacted once a surgical date becomes available.
- If you refuse 3 dates given to you your name will be removed from the waitlist.
- Should you need to cancel surgery, please do so 6 weeks in advance to allow for rescheduling of your surgical date
- Surgical Journey
2 Weeks Before Surgery:
You will be contacted by our office with respect to returning to complete the preoperative paperwork, as well as your surgical consent with Dr. Latham.
At this appointment:
- Dr. Latham will explain the scheduled procedure.
- Dr. Latham will explain the benefits and common risks of the procedure.
- You will have an opportunity to ask specific questions in
- relation to your scheduled procedure.
- You will be provided with an envelope containing all necessary information, including the time of your pre-admission appointment for
your surgery - Your arrival time for the day of your surgery will be indicated in your take home package
One Week Before Surgery
PRE-ADMISSION APPOINTMENT AT THE HOSPITAL
- The day of your pre-admission appointment at the hospital, register on the main floor at the Pre-admission department and you will be seen by a Nurse.
- Please bring your current medication list, as well as your medical history (including previous surgeries).
- If you have a medical condition such as: diabetes; cardiovascular disease; or sleep apnea, a consultation with an Anesthetist will be scheduled the same day.
- After you are seen by the Nurse, you will be sent to Diagnostic Imaging for bilateral standing foot and ankle x-rays. Diagnostic Imaging is also located on the first floor of the hospital.
- If blood tests or an ECG are required, you will be given a requisition to go to the laboratory to complete these tests.
- You will be asked to see our Pedorthist, Sarah Alger, to be fitted with any required mobility or supplemental devices. Sarah Alger will also create a post-operative weight required mobility devices and to have a post operative weight bearing plan created for you.
- You will receive a call the week of your surgery to confirm your arrival time.
Morning
- You will have been fasting since midnight
- Thoroughly wash your leg with an antibacterial soap
- Trim your Toenails
- Bring your walking aids to the hospital: crutches, knee walker, stirrup cast, aircast, bunion shoe
Arrive at the Hospital
- You will be asked to arrive three hours early, at which time you will proceed to the hospital registration desk.
- You will receive a hospital ID band for your wrist and be told to proceed to the day surgery pre op unit.
Pre-op Unit
Here you will be prepared for surgery by the hospitals team of preoperative nurses.
- One family member can join you and must remain in hospital to drive you home post operatively.
- your family will be given a surgical code by which they can follow your progress on our surgical screens.
- The pre-op nurse will start an IV, review your medications, and ask you about allergies.
- The pre-op nurse will confirm your surgery, and cross reference your consent form.
Before the OR
- You meet the OR nurse who will once again review all your relevant surgical information.
- You will be seen by Dr. Latham and his team and your limb will be marked at the approximate site of surger
- You’ll also be visited by your anesthesiologist.
The OR
- You’ll be walked, or transported into the OR
- If Anaesthesia has recommended a regional anaesthetic including either a foot and ankle or popliteal block you may stop in the block room before proceeding to the OR.
- Once in the OR you’ll be covered with a warm blanket, a surgical briefing will be completed, IV antibiotics will be administered, a thigh tourniquet will be applied and your surgery will commence.
Recovery Room
- Once your surgery is completed, you will have a dressing, or a splint applied to your leg
- You will be then transported to the recovery room for immediate post operative recovery.
- Pain medication will be administered, and a post operative X-ray will be taken
- From the recovery room, you will be discharged to the CP3 Ward as an inpatient or the Day Surgery Unit as an outpatient.
Day Surgery
- After a stay of approximately an hour in the recovery room you will be transported
to the day surWY unit. - Here you will be given post operative instructions by your nurse on: follow
up, weightbearing cast and dressing care, and medication use. - You will be given a follow up appointment with Dr Latham at the Fracture
- Clinic at the SHN Birchmount site for 2 weeks following your surgery
Contact - Once home be sure to elevate your limb above heart level
- Ice Frequently. Use of a cryocuff is recommended (if there is no cast)
- Minimal activity for the first 2 weeks helps reduce pain significantly
- BE COMPLIANT WITH YOUR WEIGHT BEARING INSTRUCTIONS (this is a critical
step in recovery from foot and ankle surgery) - tf you have specific concerns please review our FAQ’s section for possible
answers.