Patient education
When to Seek Help After Surgery: Recognising and Managing Problems
Written for someone who has had an operation and is trying to tell whether what they are seeing is ordinary recovery or something that needs help. What ordinary recovery looks like seen by direction and speed, the three tiers of urgency, the findings behind each tier, how to describe a symptom so you get the right help, what to say at the emergency department, which findings will not keep until the review, what further treatment decides, and what happens after the call.
All guides
10 guides
- What Normal Recovery Looks Like, So You Can Spot What Is NotBaseline
- Three Tiers of Urgency: Call, Same Day, Emergency NowUrgency
- What Warrants a Phone Call to the TeamFirst tier
- What Warrants Same-Day AssessmentSecond tier
- What Warrants Emergency Care NowThird tier
- How to Describe a Symptom So You Get the Right HelpCommunication
- At the Emergency Department: What to Say FirstPresentation
- Why Waiting for the Review Appointment Can Be the Wrong ChoiceTiming
- When the Problem Needs Further Treatment: What Is Decided, and WhenFurther treatment
- After the Call: What Happens Next, and What to ExpectAfter the call
If something is worrying you, make the call
Contact the treating team. Describe the finding, when it started and which way it is moving, and we will say whether it needs a telephone call, a same-day assessment, or emergency care now.