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It’s one thing to report on a story from the outside. It’s quite another to see it from an insider’s perspective. My recent experience with hip replacement surgery reinforced the importance of care coordination — or lack of it — when confronting a serious or chronic health condition. Importantly, it’s driven home the frustration, confusion, and feelings of helplessness that older patients and their caregivers experience when trying to work within a system that often puts profits before people and the bottom line before common sense.
I’ve joined the growing club of baby boomers who have opted for total joint replacement surgery. Fixing aging, worn-out, arthritic hips and knees (as well as ankles, shoulders, and elbows), are among the most common and cost-effective elective procedures, according to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. I share my story because there are thousands of others who struggle with similar care challenges who may be less knowledgeable about the health system, perhaps more intimidated when speaking with an insurance company, or are simply adrift when it comes to figuring out care coordination. It doesn’t have to be this way.
Boomers haven’t slowed down like our parents or grandparents did at the same age, this Kaiser Health News story pointed out. Our desire for active lifestyles and a refusal to allow osteoarthritis to slow us down means those worn-out body parts need replacing, David Levine reported in U.S. News & World Report.
So more of us are opting for joint replacement surgery. In 2014, there were 370,770 total hip replacements and 680,150 total knee replacements performed. By 2030, the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons projects these procedures will increase by 171% and 189% respectively — meaning an estimated 635,000 hips and 1.28 million knees will be replaced by the end of this decade. These surgeries are happening at younger ages, too. Between 2000 and 2014, the average age of a hip replacement patient is decreased to 64.9 years from 66.3; for knee replacements, it was 65.9 years from a mean of 68, researchers found. Women tend to make up the majority of patients.
