Pain Management
Makes the Difference
A F T E R A D E C A D E B E T W E E N H I P S U R G E R I E S ,
T O M WA S A M A Z E D AT T H E D I F F E R E N C E B E T W E E N
H I S E X P E R I E N C E S
Tom Cook is happy to
be pain-free after his
total hip replacement in
January 2014.
By Andrea Nagel
It was
13 years ago when Tom Cook had his left hip
replaced at a Spokane hospital. He said the pain was
so agonizing beforehand that he could barely walk and
was worried he would damage other parts of his body
from favoring his bad hip.
“Back then the process was quite different—not
a pleasant experience at all,” Tom said. “My doctor
warned me that I’d eventually have to get my right hip
done too. I didn’t want to go back to Spokane again.
I’m so glad I went to Kootenai.”
The main difference, Tom noticed, was in the pain
management and preparation for surgery. Kootenai
Health’s total joint program walks patients through
surgery prep classes and the pain management process
14
JOINT REPLACEMENT
