In the midst of the pandemic, I wanted to share some good news and express my appreciation for the world class surgeons we have on staff at Washington Regional.
Dr. Ratcliff, you are aware that my 85 year old mother, Alice Schaller, was originally scheduled to have hip replacement in April but due to a situation with her primary, it was cancelled prior to shutting down all elective procedures. I made a change in her primary care and rescheduled her for June, gambling that Covid-19 situation would be under control.
Dr. Hanby performed my Mom's right total hip replacement without complications on June 15th. She spent the week in the hospital and was cared for flawlessly. Keith managed to check on her personally a couple of times and take her a few things she needed since I was not able to visit.
While all of this seems pretty routine, I want to also provide some background on a vascular condition my mother was born with and is the oldest person we know of that has the rare condition. She has Klippel Trenaunay Syndrome, a rare congenital vascular disorder. The affected limb is typically longer, larger, warmer than usual as well as softer bones. The affected limb/part of body typically has port wine stains, varicose veins, malformed veins/blood vessels. There is no cure and treatment is essentially non-existent. She has worn a custom compression leotard for the past nearly 50 years to minimize extreme edema and pain. She can bleed and/or clot at the same time which of course causes extreme risk for any surgery. My Mother's entire right side from her toes to her waist are affected. This was anything but a routine procedure.
When we met with Dr. Hanby back in February, he indicated Mom was a candidate for hip replacement because her hip was in such bad shape. My only comment to Dr. Hanby was that IF he was comfortable with performing the procedure, we were 100% confident in his ability. I know his reputation as well as first hand, in performing Keith's knee replacement that Dr. Hanby is not only qualified, competent and capable, but is the ONLY surgeon I would trust to perform the procedure on my mother.
Just prior to the surgery, my mother never expressed this to me, but did later to Keith - that she did not expect to wake up from surgery. She knew she had no options left if she wanted to have any chance at a better quality of life. Over the past two years, Mom had gone from someone extremely active and energetic to using a regularly, to a walker and ultimately to wheelchair for most appointments outside the home. She was barely able to navigate stairs, her gait was extremely unsteady and was essentially bedridden at home.
We hoped for a return to a better quality of life, with use of a cane. The last 6 weeks have been nothing short than a miracle as she is now back to using a cane and can navigate stairs quite well. A side note - Mom's right leg is longer and larger and thus her knees never "matched up." Dr. Hanby mentioned some pulling or adjusting he did (I will clarify that next week when we go for her post-op appt), BUT he knees now match up! Mom is amazed and overjoyed!
Four years ago when Keith said he had a job offer in Fayetteville, Arkansas, I can tell you honestly I was not excited. However, in the past four years, we have met some of the best people we have ever known and have experienced nothing less than world class medical care for our entire family. I am not only thankful, but grateful to be in Northwest Arkansas, in Fayetteville and an employee of Washington Regional.
Have a great afternoon!
Deanna D.
5
2020-08-05T15:35:51-05:00
In the midst of the pandemic, I wanted to share some good news and express my appreciation for the world class surgeons we have on staff at Washington Regional. Dr. Ratcliff, you are aware that my 85 year old mother, Alice Schaller, was originally scheduled to have hip replacement in April but due to a situation with her primary, it was cancelled prior to shutting down all elective procedures. I made a change in her primary care and rescheduled her for June, gambling that Covid-19 situation would be under control. Dr. Hanby performed my Mom's right total hip replacement without complications on June 15th. She spent the week in the hospital and was cared for flawlessly. Keith managed to check on her personally a couple of times and take her a few things she needed since I was not able to visit. While all of this seems pretty routine, I want to also provide some background on a vascular condition my mother was born with and is the oldest person we know of that has the rare condition. She has Klippel Trenaunay Syndrome, a rare congenital vascular disorder. The affected limb is typically longer, larger, warmer than usual as well as softer bones. The affected limb/part of body typically has port wine stains, varicose veins, malformed veins/blood vessels. There is no cure and treatment is essentially non-existent. She has worn a custom compression leotard for the past nearly 50 years to minimize extreme edema and pain. She can bleed and/or clot at the same time which of course causes extreme risk for any surgery. My Mother's entire right side from her toes to her waist are affected. This was anything but a routine procedure. When we met with Dr. Hanby back in February, he indicated Mom was a candidate for...
https://ec327f1ff1.nxcli.io/testimonials/i-wanted-to-share-some-good-news/
Free Orthopaedic Injury Advice
Orthopaedic Urgent Cares
Pay Bill
Patient Portal
Schedule an Appointment
