Phone 03 9426 6800
The Orthopaedic Unit has a total of 74 beds and has dedicated teams of nursing, medical and allied health staff to expertly manage and diagnose all orthopaedic conditions.
The Orthopaedic Unit is located on Level 2 and Level 3 of the Leigh Place building at the Richmond campus. The unit is well supported by a full time Orthopaedic Registrar and has access to 24 hour emergency medical back-up, radiology, pharmacology and pathology services.
In the event that Rehabilitation is required, we offer timely transfers to our Epworth Rehabilitation Richmond facility.
Joint replacement patients ie hip and knee, are invited to attend the Orthopaedic Pre-admission Education Program. This session is multidisciplinary and patients have the opportunity to speak with a Registered Nurse, Physiotherapist and Occupational Therapist. The information provided at this session allows the patient to adequately prepare themselves, and their family, for their impending surgery.
Eligible primary hip replacement patients are strongly encouraged to donate their femoral head to the Bone Bank.
The multi-disciplinary approach allows the patient to prepare their home environment by purchasing or hiring any aides or equipment that may be required during the hospital stay and post discharge. The patient and family members are encouraged to attend a session as the improved understanding of the care process gives the patient the confidence to be an active participant from their pre-operative exercise program through to their full recovery and return home.
Embedded within the Pre-admission Program is the Multimedia Consent Module which is a computer animated interactive eduation program which all joint replacement patients and their family are invited to view.
The Orthopaedic Unit is committed to Evidence Based Practice. Close links have been forged with both Deakin University and The University of Melbourne, and a Musculo-skeletal Research Nurse (MSRN) is employed by the Orthopaedic Unit. From 1998 the MSRN has collected data which is stored on a specially designed computer software program. The Research Centre has focussed on outcomes from this data bank to allow the centre to benchmark performance with other orthopaedic units worldwide. Issues such as quality of life before and after surgery, rates of recovery, mobility and function, joint movement and effectiveness of available prosthesis has been compiled.
All Orthopaedic surgeons participate in the National Joint Registry which publishes outcomes specific to prostheses, surgical techniques and particular clinical situations.
The Orthopaedic Unit utilises state-of-the-art facilities, expert personnel and quality services including:
- Specialist Orthopaedic Surgeons
- Access to Rheumatologists
- Full time Orthopaedic Registrar
- Clinical Care Coordinator
- Musculo-skeletal Research Nurse
- Specialist allied health professionals:
- Physiotherapists
- Dietitians
- Orthotists
- Occupational Therapists
- Podiatrists - Orthopaedic Preadmission Clinic
- On-site Melbourne Pathology
- On-site Radiology including MRI, CT Scan.
- Specialist Lamina Flow Orthopaedic Theatre facilities
- On-site hairdressing facility
Associate Operations Director
Marlene Holcombe 03 9426 8674
Clinical Care Coordinator
Marg Crowhurst 03 9426 6473
Musculo-skeletal Research Nurse/Pre-Admission Program
Karren Ekberg 03 9426 8500
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