Joint Replacement

Joint pain can be a real barrier to even simple day-to-day activities — from getting out of bed to embracing our loved ones. Physical therapy and lifestyle changes can help, but sometimes joint replacement is the best way to solve the problems that can come with aging or arthritic or otherwise damaged joints.

Joint replacement surgery can mean moving without pain, doing the things you love without worrying you’ll hurt too much and embarking on a more active lifestyle. MultiCare’s comprehensive Joint Replacement Program offers full and partial joint replacement surgeries for the knees, hips, shoulders and ankles.

Each year, some of the area’s most experienced joint replacement specialists perform thousands of joint replacement surgeries through the MultiCare Joint Replacement Program. Our surgeons follow a team-based approach, working closely with your primary care doctor and other specialists, to ensure you are healthy and ready for surgery.

MultiCare’s Joint Replacement Program promises you:

• Surgical expertise. Our surgeons are joint replacement specialists who perform these complex surgeries every day. Working with you, they can evaluate your joint pain to determine if joint replacement is right for you.
• Personal joint coordinators. When you participate in MultiCare’s Joint Replacement Program, you are assigned your own patient navigator. This person will help guide you through the process of joint replacement, from preoperative education to treatment, rehabilitation and beyond.

We’re with you every step of the way:

• Your first appointment. The first step to participating in MultiCare’s Joint Replacement Program is to be examined by one of our joint replacement surgeons. Imaging tests such as X-rays, MRI or CT scans may be necessary. Your doctor may consult with your primary care provider to discuss any treatments you’ve had to date. This appointment will determine if you are a candidate for joint replacement surgery.
• Preparing for surgery. You will be assigned a joint coordinator and your surgery will be scheduled. Your joint coordinator will provide you with any pre-admission paperwork you will need to bring with you the day of your surgery, as well as other information to help you prepare for your hospital stay.
• During surgery. The timing of joint replacement surgery varies, depending on what joint is being replaced, but you can expect to be in surgery for one to several hours. We will keep your loved ones up to date on your progress, and after your surgery is complete, your surgeon will speak with them briefly in person.
• After surgery. You can expect to stay in the hospital after your joint replacement surgery for a day or two. At home, you will continue to heal. Our team will you provide with detailed instructions on what to do at home to support your recovery.
• Recovery. Physical therapy is an important part of joint replacement. Your joint coordinator will help you schedule these appointments.

The main centers for MultiCare’s Joint Replacement Program are at MultiCare Allenmore Hospital in Tacoma, MultiCare Good Samaritan Hospital in Puyallup, and MultiCare Deaconess Hospital and MultiCare Valley Hospital in Spokane. Features of our Joint Replacement Program at these locations include:

• Dedicated nursing and support staff who provide pre- and post-surgical care to joint replacement patients
• State-of-the-art operating rooms that offer some of the latest technologies available to make our joint replacement surgeries safer and less invasive
• Joint Commission Certification for hip and knee replacement (Advanced certification at Allenmore, Good Samaritan, and Valley hospitals)

Joint replacement surgeries are also performed at MultiCare Auburn Medical Center, MultiCare Covington Medical Center, and MultiCare Yakima Memorial Hospital.