Hip replacement - How to get home from hospital?

[RDMcG]

I am picking up a mate of mine next Saturday who will have the job done on Thursday. Left hip, so will need to get in right side of car. (LHD)

I can pick him up on a Cayenne or a Smart For Two (big doors and lower seat)..no idea if either will work. Has anyone had a hip replacement ? Would appreciate any advice

[Ructions]

RDMcG said:

I am picking up a mate of mine next Saturday who will have the job done on Thursday. Left hip, so will need to get in right side of car. (LHD)

I can pick him up on a Cayenne or a Smart For Two (big doors and lower seat)..no idea if either will work. Has anyone had a hip replacement ? Would appreciate any advice

Ask your mate which car will be most convenient for him???

[Magic919]

Cayenne will be better as he’ll want to avoid having his knees higher than his seat for a while after the Op. I was picked up in a Ford Transit, which was far better than the 997 so early on.

[Fastpedeller]

Taxi?
Ambulance?

[Cloudbusta]

Patient transport sounds like a better idea really.

[meehaja]

He'll be walking out and able to sit as normal...

[RDMcG]

Cloudbusta said:

Patient transport sounds like a better idea really.

I live in Canada and they do have special taxis for people who are in wheelchairs etc. My sense is to use the Cayenne, but at least we have a fallback if it does not work.

They do not provide ambulance transport. Just trying to make sure we have a workable answer for him.

[RDMcG]

Ructions said:

Ask your mate which car will be most convenient for him???

Problem is that he does not know in advance. Of course this is not an unusual operation so I am sure we will come up with an answer.

[The_Doc]

meehaja said:

He'll be walking out and able to sit as normal...

Not quite, no sitting with bottom below knees and no twisting on the new hip that early on.

Lots of car seats, particularly sports/coupes will be a bad idea and frankly quite painful this early on.

In time, any seat in any car will be fine.

[2 sMoKiN bArReLs]

We fetched 84 year old mother in a VW Golf with no issues. We were advised to pop a plastic carrier bag on the seat to help with the swivel in.

[sunbeam alpine]

I picked my mum up in a LR Discovery - as she didn't have to climb or lower herself into the car. I think the Cayenne might be the best bet.

Probably best not get too enthusiastic on the way home!

[RDMcG]

sunbeam alpine said:

I picked my mum up in a LR Discovery - as she didn't have to climb or lower herself into the car. I think the Cayenne might be the best bet.

Probably best not get too enthusiastic on the way home!

Absolutely...primary objective is comfort and the distance is fairly short

[55palfers]

2 sMoKiN bArReLs said:

. We were advised to pop a plastic carrier bag on the seat to help with the swivel in.

Excellent advice. Don't forget your 5p!

[RDMcG]

55palfers said:

Excellent advice. Don't forget your 5p!

Many thanks

[Dogwatch]

55palfers said:

Excellent advice. Don't forget your 5p!

I think the Canadian whoosh parrot might be out today! 5p is the UK gov's carrier bag tax/planet saver/money grubbing wheeze.

As the recipient of a new right hip (I broke the original..) I agree the plastic bag idea is brilliant. Big doors and comfy seats please!

As for entering and leaving the car I found that putting the good leg and hip in first was best then packing the other leg in afterwards the reverse, as our respective cases, wasn't easy. Over here it wasn't until I could resume driving again (six weeks) that I could get into the front seat of a car (fairly) easily.

For me recovery was a slowwwwww process over year or more. Big leg muscles don't take kindly to scalpels.

[RDMcG]

Dogwatch said:

I think the Canadian whoosh parrot might be out today! 5p is the UK gov's carrier bag tax/planet saver/money grubbing wheeze.

As the recipient of a new right hip (I broke the original..) I agree the plastic bag idea is brilliant. Big doors and comfy seats please!

As for entering and leaving the car I found that putting the good leg and hip in first was best then packing the other leg in afterwards the reverse, as our respective cases, wasn't easy. Over here it wasn't until I could resume driving again (six weeks) that I could get into the front seat of a car (fairly) easily.

For me recovery was a slowwwwww process over year or more. Big leg muscles don't take kindly to scalpels.

Yes...have been worried about door openings and can Borrow a Toyota 4Runner if doors are bigger. I saw quite a good device..a seat cushion that was a sandwich and was basically a shallow turntable so that you could sit on it and rotate very easily into the car.

[FlyingMeeces]

RDMcG said:

Dogwatch said:

I think the Canadian whoosh parrot might be out today! 5p is the UK gov's carrier bag tax/planet saver/money grubbing wheeze.

As the recipient of a new right hip (I broke the original..) I agree the plastic bag idea is brilliant. Big doors and comfy seats please!

As for entering and leaving the car I found that putting the good leg and hip in first was best then packing the other leg in afterwards the reverse, as our respective cases, wasn't easy. Over here it wasn't until I could resume driving again (six weeks) that I could get into the front seat of a car (fairly) easily.

For me recovery was a slowwwwww process over year or more. Big leg muscles don't take kindly to scalpels.

Yes...have been worried about door openings and can Borrow a Toyota 4Runner if doors are bigger. I saw quite a good device..a seat cushion that was a sandwich and was basically a shallow turntable so that you could sit on it and rotate very easily into the car.

I was just about to come and suggest exactly that!

Along with which a Handy Bar may be enormously helpful. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Handybar-Auto-Entry-Exit-...

[RDMcG]

FlyingMeeces said:

I was just about to come and suggest exactly that!

Along with which a Handy Bar may be enormously helpful. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Handybar-Auto-Entry-Exit-...

Very helpful...many thanks!

[arn22110]

I was picked up in a LHD Duster when I had left hip done in Southampton. I had no trouble getting in but had to use the centre console and window opening to position myself properly in the passenger seat ... the car journey was fine, the ferry crossing back to France was uncomfortable as was the next week.

[RDMcG]

Thank for all of the advice. I had my mate try the plastic bag for swivelling into the car prior to operation and it did help. He is under the knife as I write this so will do my best to make his trip back to his place as pain free as possible.