Wound Care

Patients will have small wounds from the surgery, which have dressings on them. The wound dressings are water-resistant. Patients can shower with them but cannot swim. The dressings should be gently dried with a towel after they get wet. Dressings should be kept on for five days and replaced if necessary.

There are Steri-Strips beneath the dressings. These should be kept on until they come off by themselves.

Once the dressings have been removed, patients may continue to wash the wounds as normal, drying the wound carefully afterwards with a clean towel. There will not be any visible stitches.

The normal trajectory of recovery is for patients to recover easily and well, improving each day. The following are outside the normal trajectory of recovery and should be referred back to us for review

Please contact us if patients experience any of the following:

  • Red, raised or swollen wounds
  • Bleeding
  • Racing heart rate
  • Fever or high temperature
  • Vomiting
  • General unwell feeling or any pain
  • Black, tarry stools

After-Hours Concerns

For an additional layer of safety and support for our patients, we have an after-hours hotline for our post-operative patients with urgent queries or concerns. This is given to patients in their post-operative discharge instructions.

In the event of an emergency, patients are instructed to either call 000 or go the Emergency Department of the hospital in which they were treated as well as call the hot-line to notify us.

Follow-Up Appointments

Post-operative follow-up appointments must be made one to two weeks after surgery.

Medication to be Taken Daily

  • Pariet (Rabeprazole): Take one 20mg tablet each day for 12 weeks
  • Clexane: Daily injections under the skin of the left or right thigh
    • Dose: 40 mg SCI upper thigh
    • Duration: 5 nights commencing 6pm evening of discharge from hospital.

Patients can take regular medications for pre-existing conditions as normal.

Medication to be Taken When Needed

For pain:

  • Paracetamol capsules (not tablets): Two capsules at a time, up to four times a day. It is best to take Paracetamol regularly for a few days and then taper them off. This will reduce the amount of Endone required.
  • Endone (Oxycodone): One 5mg tablet at a time as needed, up to four times a day. Take Endone if the pain is not settled with Paracetamol.

For nausea:

  • Zofran (Ondansetron): Place one 8mg wafer on tongue to dissolve as needed, up to three times a day.

For belching:

Buscopan (Hyoscine): Take one 10mg tablet at a time as needed, up to four times a day.