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Matthew J. Kraay, MS, MD, is Director of the Division of Joint Reconstruction & Arthritis Surgery at UHCMC and the Kingsbury G. Heiple and Fred A. Lennon Professor of Orthopaedics at Case Western Reserve University. Nearly six years ago, Dr. Kraay and his colleagues recognized that the perioperative care needs of patients undergoing joint replacement surgery were uniquely different from other hospitalized patients. With extensive input from other UHCMC medical and nursing staff, therapists, former patients and caregivers, they designed a $3 million patient care environment dedicated to these patients. In June 2012, UHCMC Center for Joint Replacement & Preservation opened its doors. Located on the sixth floor of the Lerner Tower at UHCMC, the new Center ��� which can accommodate 30 patients at a time ��� was designed to promote a feeling of wellness. It���s quiet, peaceful, bright and cheerful, and looks and feels more like a boutique hotel than an acute care hospital. To help patients better understand the importance of their role in the healing process, a comprehensive educational 18 | Cleveland/Akron/Canton MD News program is offered prior to surgery. Afterwards, and throughout their entire episode of care, patients are cared for by a dedicated staff that is specially trained in treatment of patients undergoing major joint reconstructive surgery. ���Increased consumer awareness, ���value based purchasing��� by insurers and Healthcare Reform occurring over the last several years has placed a growing emphasis on patient satisfaction,��� Dr. Kraay explains. ���Analysis of factors influencing patient satisfaction has shown that cleanliness, noise levels, knowledge and responsiveness of the patient care staff, and effective management of pain are important determinants of patient satisfaction.��� For pain management, UH employs a unique multi-modal approach after total joint replacement that involves both the surgical and the anesthesia teams. ���Our innovative pain management approach at the UHCMC Center for Joint ��� MDNEWS.COM ��� JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 Replacement & Preservation has made hip and knee replacement a relatively pleasant experience compared to what it was like even five or six years ago. Our knee replacement patients especially benefit from our comprehensive pain management and accelerated rehab programs, and most of our patients go home three days post-operatively,��� says Steven Fitzgerald, MD. ���We utilize multiple peripheral nerve blocks in conjunction with a number of different non-narcotic pain medications to try to improve early mobility. This allows us to minimize the use of perioperative narcotics which have a lot of side effects including nausea and vomiting, drowsiness, confusion and constipation. And this dramatically improves the patient experience and satisfaction.��� UH also has a multi-modal approach to infection control before, during and after surgery.