Wansbeck's first knee replacement day-case patient

A Bedlington woman has become the first day-case surgical patient at Wansbeck General Hospital.

Sharon Branley was discharged from the hospital's new Orthopaedics centre on the same day as having a full knee replacement.

The 57-year-old had suffered problems in her left knee for the last 40 years and when the pain due to her arthritis became so severe in late 2015, her consultant said it was not a case of ‘if’ she needed a replacement, but ‘when’.

From the outset, Sharon said she wanted to have the operation as a ‘day-case’ and not stay overnight in hospital.

Consultant orthopaedic surgeon Mr Scott Muller, who carried out the operation, said he would be happy to support her hopes of going home the same day, as long as she was pain-free and able to use crutches.

Sharon was one of the first patients to be cared for in Northumbria’s centre of excellence at Wansbeck hospital, dedicated to patients having orthopaedic procedures.