pre-op

[OldaYoda]

I’m on waiting list for CABG. Just been called for pre-op. Had lung/carotid/echo done. How long have people waited for The Op after pre-op?

Going to Wythenshawe if that helps

[BeKind28-]

Hello

After I had mine done it was 3 or 4 weeks when I had my triple Bypass done

It is a good sign though as they have got you having these done that it should hopefully not be much longer

Let us know how you get on x

[OldaYoda in reply to BeKind28-]

thanks - going to a meeting with the team on Friday too- nurses, physio etc. It’s nearly as stressful as watching England play football 😂

[BeKind28- in reply to OldaYoda]

Hello

Hopefully you will find out more at the meeting but as I said sounds like you will not be waiting long

Glad you still have your sense of humour you made me laugh nearly as stressful as watching England play but even facing Bypass Surgery when comparing it to watching England play says a lot when we find England more stressful to watch but very true x

[Ageingfast]

it is a good sign that the surgeons will do their work soon. In my case, surgeon wanted the three tests just days before the op. He said he wanted to know what he will find when he operated. So I had them done as an inpatient.

England got through last night. I hope you will get through before England come home with the trophy.

C.

[Thesnowman51]

I was probably lucky, it was 8 days from my pre-op to my op. Less time to worry about it. Hope all goes we for you

[Mancunian1]

the very best of luck. I too have the same set of tests, at Wythenshawe next Tuesday. The specialist nursing team there have been amazing, one lady in particular but not sure if appropriate to name, in arranging all my tests for the same day. Working as I do in the NHS, I’d be lucky to get a couple of patients tests done in a month in my area, and so it shows how much can be achieved when it really matters by amazing staff. I too am really worried that it’s all going to get very real very quickly but as many others have said on here, and as the really good book the nurse gave me after my initial meeting says, it’s all about a new start.

Wythenshawe also have an amazing network of volunteers, established many years, who run a brilliant support network “ the ticker club” which I have yet to make contact with but certainly will be doing soon

[OldaYoda in reply to Mancunian1]

Thanks - my tests were spread out over 6 weeks, but all done now.

My pre-op is Tuesday- may bump into you!

[Donny64]

I stayed in hospital waiting for.mine, two weeks but not really a good guide as mine was urgent. One thing I would say though is you couldn't be at a better hospital. I was in Wythenshawe and it's the centre of excellence for bypass procedures. Good luck 👍

[OldaYoda in reply to Donny64]

Thank you - hope you are doing well now

[momander]

Hi,I think it very much depends on how long the waiting list is, how many heart surgeons the hospital has, and how serious/ urgent your situation is deemed to be by the experts!! I had my double cabg 18 months ago and was very lucky as I was kept in hospital, so was classed as an in patient. I hope you don't have to wait too long. Did they say roughly how long you would have to wait, or how high up you were on the list? Good luck when it comes.

[OldaYoda in reply to momander]

I tried phoning but I think I got the work experience boy on the phone! Hoping either pre-op or the Meet the Team event will shed more light!

[momander in reply to OldaYoda]

I hope you wont be too long.

[Schora1]

Hi, my husband is on said list at Wythenshawe too. My understanding from my niece who is a senior cardiology nurse there is it’s usually within a month. However delays occur if urgent cases come in. It’s not so much the theatre/surgeon time but spaces in the ICU. Hope this helps.

[JSCAPM]

Hi OldaYoda - we had a mixed experience with the cardiac team at Wythenshawe.

My partner was diagnosed last November with coronary artery disease. Stenting was attempted in December but that failed so he was told he needed a bypass. Unfortunately no one actually made the referral (the responsibility of the Silver Heart Team at Northern Care Alliance) and it was February when we realised he’d been forgotten.

He was duly put on the list and got to see the surgeon (from Wythenshawe) on 22 March. The surgeon said it was now an urgent case and that he expected the bypass to be done in “six to eight weeks”. He requested some tests and these were done very speedily within the next week.

On 18 April he had his pre-op appointment at Wythenshawe, along with various additional tests. To our dismay, we were told that they still couldn’t give us a date for the surgery (as another poster said, it seems it’s due to a lack of ICU availability). When we asked how long the pre-op tests remained valid, we were told that they were valid for three months and, if the wait exceeded that, they’d simply repeat them. To say we were deflated is an understatement.

However, the pre-op nurse told me to let her know if my partner deteriorated. Since his condition was worsening, I rang her on 22 May to see what they could do. The original surgeon was on leave for most of June, so they put him on another surgeon’s list.

The bypass was finally done on 25 June and he’s been at home recovering for a few days now.

Sorry this has been so lengthy but I thought you might find it useful.

With hindsight, I would have chased it up sooner instead of assuming that everything was progressing as it should. To be fair to Wythenshawe, once I made them aware that my partner’s condition was worsening, they pulled out all the stops to get the surgery done quickly. It was still a six month overall wait though.

Hope it all works out for you.

[OldaYoda]

That sounds really tough, but glad he’s on the right side of it now. I hope he continues to recover well.

My experience is that the surgeon is off on holiday a lot, but is often at other places doing private work. I’m not doing too badly, so I’m definitely not going to be on the urgent lists, it’s more to have a clue when to expect to be on the table, so I can plan life around the operation.

I am with Mr Waterhouse, do you know who your partner was with?

[JSCAPM in reply to OldaYoda]

Thanks OldaYoda, he seems to be doing well. It has been a tough time and I know exactly what you mean about wanting to know when it’s likely to be done. The waiting is hard, especially because it’s largely out of your control.

The original surgeon was Mr Venkateswaran but he ended up with Mr Citarella (who I believe is fairly new to the team). My partner had a lot of confidence in Mr Venkat after seeing him in March and of course he didn’t get to meet Mr Citarella until he was actually in hospital. He’s really happy though that Mr Citarella could fit him in and that it was successful, so it worked out well. To be honest, Wythenshawe is a centre of excellence for cardiac surgery so I’m sure everyone on the team is at the top of their game.

Best of luck.

[OldaYoda]

I am lucky to live and work quite near Wythenshawe, but my original cardiologist was in Macclesfield- due to quirks of geography and borders. So I have appointments in Macc and Stockport too.

All I hear about Wythenshawe cardio is glowing, so I am less worried.

Glad partner is doing well, it gives me confidence too!

[davebal67]

I had my op done at Manchester Spire but some of the nursrs were from Wythenshawe, some of the best care from them. The nurses were just amazing.