MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Ask a doctor and they will tell you the term elective is a very broad word. It could mean a face lift, or it can be someone who needs knee or hip replacement surgery because they are in a lot of pain.
"We are happy to be able to call the patients up who have been waiting a month or more and say ‘yes, you can have your surgery,’" says Dr. John Lochemes, owner of Titan Orthopedics.
Lochemes says many of his patients' surgeries were put on hold because of the ban due to COVID-19. He says they may have technically been considered elective surgery, but that doesn't mean the patients weren't in pain.
"In this case, an elective orthopedic case probably doesn't feel elective to the patient who needs it," says Lochemes.
From doctors who perform surgeries at outpatient centers to those who work out of hospitals in the Mid-South, elective surgeries are resuming. Yes, changes are being put into place.
For example, at Baptist Hospital and most others, you will now be screened for COVID-19 before a procedure takes place. If you are positive, it will be postponed.
Employees are also being screened, there will be fewer patients scheduled for surgeries per day, and yes there will be social distancing.
"We will be following those guidelines regarding social distancing, even while they are getting care in a physician's office or a GI lab or an operating room," says Dr. Paul Depriest, Chief Operating Officer, Baptist Hospital.
Dr. Depriest expects there will be a backlog of cases because surgeries were delayed, but eventually things will level off. He says new guidelines were put in place to protect patients and workers.
"We think the backlog will be worked down and we will be able to get to a new normal. But it will look different than what it looked like six months ago," says Depriest.