FAQ

If Surgery Is Indicated:

Dr Tong will have a discussion with you about the potential risks and benefits of your surgery. You will then complete a hospital consent form, along with an admission form. Most patients are able to complete this paperwork, in some cases attend a pre-admission clinic, and then go ahead with the surgery. However, depending on your medical condition, it may prove necessary to have pre-operative consultations with other specialists e.g., to assess cardiac or vascular status. This will be discussed with Dr Tong at the time you consent to the surgery.

It may be necessary for you to cease certain medications prior to your surgery, and this will also be discussed.

PLEASE NOTIFY DR TONG IF YOU ARE ON BLOOD THINNERS, eg. Xarelto, Eliquis, Pradaxa, Aspirin, clopidogrel, fish oil, turmeric, anti-inflammatories.

If you are having your surgery privately at John Flynn Hospital you will be advised by Dr Tong’s receptionists regarding any pre-admission.

Is It Necessary To Have Private Health Insurance?

Dr Tong operates privately (for those patients with private health insurance) at John Flynn Hospital in Tugun.

• Private Health Insurance: Allows you to have your surgery at a date of your choosing. In particular, it also ensures that Dr Tong performs your surgery. Your pre-admission clinic appointments and admission times for surgery are all co-ordinated by Dr Tong’s receptionists.

• NO Private Health Insurance – SELF-FUNDED: If you do not have private health insurance you can still have your surgery at the time of your choosing in a private hospital as a self-funded patient. Dr Tong would perform your surgery. Any hospital, theatre fee and equipment costs are borne by the patient, and the fees for Dr Tong and the anaesthetist are partially claimable from Medicare. Quotes would be arranged from Dr Tong, the anaesthetist involved and the hospital prior to any surgery taking place.

• NO Private Health Insurance – PUBLIC PATIENT: If you do not have private health insurance, then you would have your surgery at either the Tweed Heads or Murwillumbah public hospitals. This means you see Dr Tong in his private rooms at Palm Beach. After discussion of your surgical procedure, you then complete a public hospital admission form. This is then passed on to the booking office at the public hospital and you are placed on the waiting list for surgery. The booking office co-ordinates with you a date for your pre-admission clinic consultation with the anaesthetist, your admission date for surgery, admission time, etc. The wait list time varies, depending on the procedure to be performed. Dr Tong's public waiting list time averages about 5 months for joint replacement surgery and is certainly less than the local or national average, according to the hospital website.
  Privately insured patients surgery can usually be performed within a few weeks.

Both private and public postoperative appointments are at Dr Tong’s rooms in Palm Beach.

ANTERIOR HIP REPLACEMENT IS POPULAR NOW AND THEY CLAIM BETTER FUNCTIONAL RESULTS:

You may be discharged from hospital 1 day earlier with an anterior approach, however results show no difference in function at 2 weeks (*Ref 2) and 2 months (*Ref 3) compared to posterior approach.

It is important to note that if there is a higher failure rate using the anterior approach, you will require further surgery and your 1 day earlier discharge from hospital would look a little irrelevant.

Different orthopaedic fashions come and go and we have seen a number of these over the years. Most orthopaedic surgeons pursue the anterior hip approach for marketing reasons or if they have an increased dislocation rate. Most patients having an anterior approach do so believing they are getting a superior product, but unfortunately the reverse is probably true.

WHY ARE REVISION RATES IMPORTANT?

The Australian NJRR is a world recognised independent body which records all joint replacements in Australia and reports annually. This helps identify poorly performing prostheses (which tends to decrease surgeons’ use of that particular prosthesis), but it also confirms well performing prostheses.

The NJRR has made available individual surgeon revision rates for about the last 10 years. This data is presently only available privately to the individual surgeons and can only be compared to the national average. Hopefully this data will be made public in the not too distant future as it will then allow patients to obtain factual data rather than exaggerated claims, flash websites or marketing to help them make important decisions about their joint replacement, which should be a decision for a lifetime in most instances.

*Ref 2: IA Maler et al JBJS, Vol 98-B, No 6, June 2016

*Ref 3: Kirsten L Poehling-Monaghan et al. Clin Orthop Relat Res 2015 Feb; 473(2): 623-631