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First and Second Stages
of Recovery Room
Discharge, Overnight Stays, and Recovery Facility
Private Duty Nurses,
and Going Home
Post Operative Instructions
and Avoiding Complications
Warning Signs
General Recovery Rule
of Three's
Discharge
If you are not staying overnight in the same facility
that you had surgery, then you will be discharged. This
means that the doctor will give his or her approval
for you to leave.
You should be given a time and date for a follow-up
appointment to see your doctor, post operative instructions,
and any prescriptions that you may need (if you don't
already have them).
If you had any medication other than local anesthesia
and over the counter pain medications (like Tylenol),
you will need someone to drive you.
There are several places you can go to begin your recovery:
you can stay where you are if you are in a surgery center
or hospital that allows overnight stays, you can go
to a recovery facility, to a friend's house or hotel
room, or to your own house.
You and your surgeon should agree on where you'll stay
ahead of time.
Overnight Stay
Some doctors prefer or even insist that you stay overnight
in a room at the surgery center or hospital. (Private
room accommodations may or may not be available... it's
best to check ahead of time).
If you do stay, you will avoid risks of complications
that can occur from transferring in and out of vehicles
and moving around too much. You will be in a facility
where the staff is knowledgeable in caring for cosmetic
surgery patients; where the nurses are trained in specific
warning signs and will contact the doctor immediately
if any concerns arise.
The surgery center or hospital is also usually conveniently
located for the doctor to see you after surgery, without
you having to go to the office for an appointment. For
cosmetic surgery nowadays, most people only need this
high level of care for the first night.
If you are in a surgery center with "23-hour hold"
restrictions, you will not be allowed to stay longer
(by law), but if you are in a hospital, you will have
the option to stay, albeit for a price.
Overnight care at a surgery center or hospital can
range between $500 and $1500 per night (hospitals are
usually at the more expensive end).
Recovery Facility
Instead of staying in the same place you had surgery,
you and your plastic surgeon may think it's best for
you to go to a recovery facility, especially if you
do not have someone to stay with you at home, or if
you're from out of town.
The recovery facility can be as advanced as a special
nursing floor in a long term care facility, as simple
as a private room in someone's house, or somewhere in
between such as a set of rooms with nursing care in
a hotel.
The level of staffing can range from registered nurses
(RNs) to medical assistants (MAs) to unlicensed attendants
providing a spare room and making a business out of
changing bandages and catering to your needs after surgery.
Fees can vary between $300 per night to $800 per night
or more, and may include transportation, food, hydraulic
beds, medical supplies (but not medications), telephone
use, and cable TV. Usually the higher the level of care,
the more costly, but safer your stay will be.
To Next Section -
Private Duty Nurses and Going Home
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