Email a Friend
Print Article
He's a Jolly Good Fellow
On my last blog post I talked a bit about who will do your surgery. This is a very difficult decision for anyone, as even in this country there are no rules or regulations concerning specialty training in many surgical procedures. In Orthopaedic Surgery, for example, just finishing an Orthopaedic Residency allows you to legally (and morally) perform joint replacement surgery. You are trained in it. You should be able to do it. The problem is that over the past twenty years the bar of quality has been raised. It is now a standard in the community for a surgeon to do a fellowship which is an extra year of training in joint replacement.
What does fellowship training mean for you?
It means that your surgeon has spent a FULL YEAR at an established joint replacement center studying the science and surgical art of joint replacement. This is not a six week course, a weekend course, or all the other scam-like terms used by some surgeons to hide from the public their lack of fellowship. It is a level of commitment to the skill that is impressive.
Does this mean a fellowship trained surgeon is a better surgeon?
This can never be said. Evaluation of the quality of a surgeon is in many categories. What is does say is that this particular surgeon committed himself or herself to the field of joint replacement surgery at a higher level. What can definitely be said is that the surgeon who does a fellowship is a better surgeon than he or she would have been if a he or she did not do that fellowship. How much better? WAY BETTER!
How does this help me decide on a surgeon?
It is one of the many parameters you can use. In my last post I wrote of surgical volume and clearly fifty or more procedures a year is a minimum number to go by. Therefore we now have two important parameters to consider:
Ask a lot of questions of your surgeon.
Dr. K.
Related Topics: Technorati Tags: joint replacement, orthopaedic surgery, arthritis, health and wellness
What does fellowship training mean for you?
It means that your surgeon has spent a FULL YEAR at an established joint replacement center studying the science and surgical art of joint replacement. This is not a six week course, a weekend course, or all the other scam-like terms used by some surgeons to hide from the public their lack of fellowship. It is a level of commitment to the skill that is impressive.
Does this mean a fellowship trained surgeon is a better surgeon?
This can never be said. Evaluation of the quality of a surgeon is in many categories. What is does say is that this particular surgeon committed himself or herself to the field of joint replacement surgery at a higher level. What can definitely be said is that the surgeon who does a fellowship is a better surgeon than he or she would have been if a he or she did not do that fellowship. How much better? WAY BETTER!
How does this help me decide on a surgeon?
It is one of the many parameters you can use. In my last post I wrote of surgical volume and clearly fifty or more procedures a year is a minimum number to go by. Therefore we now have two important parameters to consider:
- Does my surgeon perform fifty or more of this procedure a year?
- Did the surgeon perform an advanced fellowship in joint replacement?
Ask a lot of questions of your surgeon.
Dr. K.
Related Topics: Technorati Tags: joint replacement, orthopaedic surgery, arthritis, health and wellness
