BRUNSWICK, Georgia: Oct. 7, 2009 – Beginning Oct. 12, residents of
Southeast Georgia with hip and/or knee joint problems will have a comprehensive
care center right in their own community. The Joint Replacement Center
will open on the sixth floor of the Brunswick Campus, 2415 Parkwood Drive.
The new Center will provide the latest scientific advances, expertise,
and experience to successfully guide patients through hip and knee replacement
procedures from diagnosis and treatment to recovery, rehabilitation, and
follow-up.
“Our goal for putting a Center like this together was to create a
unique patient experience based on a wellness philosophy,” says
J. Kevin Brooks, MD, one of the Center’s four board certified orthopaedic
surgeons. “The Center is designed to provide better pre-operative
expectations, increased satisfaction, and a faster return to the patient’s
home environment.”
For those needing surgery, care will begin with pre-operative classes preparing
the patient and his or her support person (coach) on what to expect and
how to best prepare for the procedure. These preparations include learning
and performing gentle exercises designed to strengthen muscles and improve
mobility for faster recovery.
After surgery, patients will begin their rehabilitation in a supportive,
friendly environment in the Center that will include daily goals, fun
exercises, and activities with fellow patients. This Center’s “A
Joint JourneySM,” is an island-themed program that features activities
from picking up objects such as “Jekyll Island” sea turtles
with a grabber, to “traveling” to Sapelo and St. Simons islands.
This unique, customized program will prepare patients to return home as
quickly as possible. Continued outpatient rehabilitation and follow-up
care will be monitored by each patient’s orthopaedic surgeon and
the Joint Replacement Center team.
The Joint Replacement Center team will be led by Brooks and his fellow
board-certified orthopaedic surgeons J. Melvin Deese Jr., MD, Beau Sasser
Jr., MD, and Denny Carter, MD. These surgeons and their teams of health
care professionals have years of experience and perform hundreds of such
surgeries each year using innovative technologies such as an orthopaedic
surgical navigation system available at the Health System. In addition,
the Health System offers MAKOplasty®, a pioneering surgeon-interactive
robotic arm system to perform a partial knee procedure, which is not available
in Jacksonville or any other facility in South Georgia. This minimally
invasive cutting-edge procedure can help some patients who suffer from
osteoarthritis of the knee and are not yet candidates for total knee replacement.
Joint replacement surgery is considered only after other treatments have
failed to provide adequate pain relief and mobility. If you or a loved
one feel you may be a candidate for joint replacement or partial knee
replacement (MAKOplasty®), call the Joint Replacement Center at 912-466-2323.