When registered nurse Judy Johnson returns to work at the cardiac rehabilitation unit at Schuylkill Medical Center-South Jackson Street on Monday morning, she'll be walking tall.
She's been off since October, when she had her right knee replaced. She had her left knee done in March. Both surgeries were done at Schuylkill Medical Center, which was recently recognized for excellence in joint replacement services.
"Monday is going to be a long day but it's going to be a good day. I do a lot of walking at work. You're constantly up going from patient to patient," said Johnson, 60, of Pottsville.
Before her surgery, Johnson's crippled left knee had her walking bow-legged, her knee surgeon, Dr. Thomas Wheeler, said Tuesday.
"Everything that wasn't working right is now working right. My leg is straight and I'm standing taller," Johnson said Tuesday.
Schuylkill Medical Center-South Jackson Street has been recognized for its superior patient clinical outcomes, given five-star ratings in both joint replacement and total knee replacement for 10 consecutive years, said M. Michael Peckman, Schuylkill Health marking and public relations director.
The recognition came in the form of a report recently released by HealthGrades, Denver, Colo. Founded in 1999, it's "America's most trusted, independent source of physician information and hospital quality outcomes, according to its website at www.healthgrades.com.
Pottsville Hospital and Warne Clinic was first given these five-star ratings by HealthGrades in 2002. In 2008, the hospital merged with Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center, Pottsville, to become Schuylkill Medical Center, Peckman said.
The joint replacements at Schuylkill Medical Center are becoming more popular, according to statistics Peckman provided.
In 2008, Schuylkill Health did 82. In 2009, there were 109. In 2010, there were 102 and so far this year, there were 134, Peckman said.
"We are very proud of the high level of services we have been able to consistently provide. Joint replacement surgery here in
Schuylkill County is among the best anywhere in the state of Pennsylvania and across the nation. This is a credit to our orthopedic surgeons, our surgical teams and our entire delivery system," said John E. Simodejka, Schuylkill Health president and CEO, said this week.
Schuylkill Health's joint replacement program is well-rounded, according to Peckman and hospital staff. It includes an "Orthopedic Camp," educating patients prior to surgery, and a total of eight health centers in the county that offer rehabilitation services.
These include the Schuylkill Rehabilitation Center at 300 Schuylkill Medical Plaza, Pottsville.
"We all work as a team, from the initial visit at a class right to the very end in outpatient," said Kris Guers, director of rehabilitation services at Schuylkill Health.
"We're also trying to stay on the cutting edge, going with the technology that's available. But not everything is made for everybody," Dr. Calvin D. Stoudt, an orthopedic surgeon at Schuylkill Health, said Tuesday.
Stoudt and Wheeler both said each patient is an individual and physicians do their best to do what's right.
Both also endorsed the brand of replacement knees and hips they use, which come from Zimmer-Randall Associates, Harrisburg.
Guers, who was born in Tumbling Run, said what also gives Schuylkill Health an edge is a strong work ethic.
"One thing in Schuylkill County is we're very humble and we always think that somebody does things better. And because of that, we work so much harder to try to exceed," Guers said.