Surgery experience at Nuffield Wessex Hospital/ Nick Boeree

[banhorn]

It is very unfortunate that Spinches seems to have had such a negative experience at Nuffield, but my own visit there was excellent. Tim has pretty much called out my own time there to a "t".

Boeree is one of the warmest, kindest and most thorough medical professionals I've ever met. The staff at Nuffield are no different!

My interactions with the pre-admission nurse, Jo, Sam, the regular nurses, the anesthetist, the pharmacist, the physiotherapists, the tea lady (she was unreal!), the food attendants and even the receptionist in hospital were excellent! The pre-admission nurse even took the time to prepare me for the needles - of which I fear a great deal and usually make me pass out! She was exceptionally gentle and let the other nurses know to ensure they were gentle with me as well! They even marked my file as "needlephobic"

I chose Mr. Boeree and Nuffield because every past patient I spoke with gave it great reviews. I think Dr. McGill (anesthetist) put it best when he told me that the hospital is a little older and not the 5-star hotel-ish type facilities one might see in the US, but the surgical theatre and care I would receive there would be second to none. He was absolutely correct and I would go back in a heart beat. I would go as far as to say that I was a little bummed out when it came time for my discharge on the 4th day because I was enjoying the company and food so much.

I just realized that I didn't really review my experience on here previously and I'm sorry for just getting around to it now.

-Brett

[Lizard]

Like almost EVERYONE replying to this thread, my experience (which just happened!) at Nuffield couldn't have been further from Spinches. I was going to write about my experience in detail this weekend, but will write a short version now, so that people can see that my experience at Nuffield was not like that described by Spinches.

I went alone to have surgery by Mr. Boeree, Spinal Surgeon, for my first surgery EVER, two weeks ago. Checked in on 8/29, surgery 2 level cervical ADR 8/31, d/c on 9/3 to hotel. I stayed a week after surgery in England, AS ADVISED, and did not return home until 9/9. My experience was totally positive. I had great family and friend support by phone and email-if you are traveling alone, this is a must. I couldn't be happier with my decision choosing Mr. Boeree, and the staff of Nuffield for my surgery. Dr. Herbertson, my anaesthetist, was very caring and rounded on me every morning and sometimes evening. My nurses were ALL very caring and concerned about my pain level and progress. I even want to note, that the OR nurses came up to see me the day after surgery to check on me as they knew I had traveled to England by myself. Honestly, my experience was POLAR OPPOSITE of Spinches. ALL of the Nuffield staff were personable. Jo, Mr. Boeree's assistant, came by to see me, and she was warm and very helpful with suggestions for me for hotels.

I agree with what someone else posted, you get what you give when you go to have surgery, but I would say in almost any setting, not just internationally. I traveled alone for my first major surgery ever by Mr. Boeree at Nuffield, and I know I made the right choice. I will post a detailed account of my experience this weekend for everyone to read. I just had to reply to this thread quickly while I was on here to let others reading know that I just returned from Nuffield and my experience was completely positive.

[speedyralph]

I had a rather different experience than Sandra's, but I'm not dismissing her experience.

True, there is a slight culture difference, but nothing that would make me worry about the Number 1 man, Mr. Boeree. Ultimately, I think we crossed the pond for one of the "best Neurosurgeons on the Planet", as Dr. Herbertson said as he was about to sedate me in the pre theater room. I was crying and gasping like a little baby because I wasn't accepting the fact that I had put myself in the predicament of getting neck surgery, so willingly! I told Dr. Herbertson that it would be easier to deal with it if I was involved in a tragic accident and I didn't have a choice but to get surgery. That's when he said the comment about Mr. Boeree's stellar reputation on the PLANET. At that moment, I started calming down rapidly as I got knocked out by the anesthesia.

I started saying this story because that was what brought me to my senses that nothing else mattered. My only concern from the whole Boeree/Nurse/Nuffield experience was that I was supposed to be on NSAID post op. I basically forgot to mention neither this post op nor the second day, but I was handed an ice bag on the second day to use throughout the day. The third day when I saw Mr. Boeree I asked him if I should be on NSAID's and he looked at the nurse next to him taking notes looking for confirmation that he had ordered this, but didn't find that confirmation, then he instructed the nurses to give me Ibuprofen. This kind of bothered me, but it wasn't enough to say I had a bad experience.

All women in the staff acted like my mother or sister. I felt at home. The Molton soaps and lotions were a nice touch to the room. The food was awesome! I must of ate like three cheesecakes, four plain yogurts with honey as one of the nurses suggested to help me heal faster from the throat irritation from the tube. The tea lady was ON POINT with serving tea and taking food orders every three hours. The in-between lunch and dinner lemon cakes with tea where great. I must of had 2-3 bowls of mushroom soup. I could really go on and on here. Yeah, one of the nurses on the surgery morning came into my room at 9:30 am and instructed me to change into the robe because Mr. Boeree was already done with Sandra. Turns out, that I stayed waiting anxiously for my turn at Mr. Boeree's hands, but didn't end up going to the pre theater room until 12:30 or so. Big deal, right?

Anyways, these little things I mentioned were NO issue to me. I personally don't have an inner circle of Ivy League friends and family to be expecting the up most respect from anybody I come in contact with. I personally believe that one must adapt to any given situation thrown at us in this world of uncertainty.

Once again, I am not knocking anything Sandra said. I could totally relate to her when I think of the time I was 22 yrs old and living in France as a Formula car driver for a racing team and I had to deal with a HUGE language barrier from all the team mechanics and employees, as I felt that they were giving priority to my team mate simply because he had better communication and it was his second season with the same team. I literally walked away from the team while we were attending the Austrian race and walked into an Italian team, I was already conversing with. At the next event, I was second fastest in qualifying. I guess timing was off for Sandra and planets didn't align in a way that affected her experiences. I do have a lot of respect for Sandra and enjoyed spending time with her talking about our spinal experiences.

I’m very analytical at describing events, but please be advised that I would recommend Nuffield Hospital and Mr. Boeree to anybody in a heartbeat. Everything happened so quick and effortless that I truly felt it was a breeze from the time I went in, 8/24, to the time I checked out, 8/26. It didn't even feel like a hospital, the nurses seemed like they were family and Mr. Boeree was one of the most comforting in individuals you will meet.


Thanks for reading my fragmented and run on sentences! Lol ENG writing was never my best


Feel free to pm me for any other questions.

Ralph

[tyler]

I believe that Mr Boeree did a really great job on my cervical spine and I would highly recommend him as a surgeon.

I absolutely agree with Sandra's opinion of Nick Boeree - and would likewise highly recommend him as a surgeon. But I had a completely different experience with the other members of staff - as has almost everyone else it seems.

My experience at the Nuffield Wessex was absolutely problem-free. I believe the staff was both knowledgeable and professional, and made every reasonable effort to make me as comfortable as possible.

Overall, I felt that the staff and facility were far better than I've experienced almost anywhere in the States - and I couldn't speak more highly of my experience with Nick, both before and after surgery. And the results speak for themselves.

I was surprised to hear that Sandra went to England alone for spinal surgery. I would never do that myself, even in my hometown, much less for major surgery in another country. It seems that it wasn't recommended by staff - and I would certainly have strongly advised against it. I don't know how much being alone or feeling the need to question things contributed but I suspect it didn't help. If asked, I hope most of us would recommend that patients have someone along. It just adds a level of comfort in a situation that can seem stressful even for hospital veterans.

I noticed that Sandra hasn't been on much since her earlier post but I wish her as smooth a recovery as I had.

Just added my one-year update - enjoying the gym, climbing and long-distance cycling (when I manage to avoid kites ^^):
Relief After Cervical ADR C5-6 & C6-7 with Spinal Kinetics M6-C Artifical Disc / Nick Boeree, Nuffield Wessex

Very best to all,
Tyler

[Katie]

I don't know how much being alone or feeling the need to question things contributed but I suspect it didn't help.

Good to hear from you again, Tyler. I suspect you may have hit the nail on the head here. Even though I had my wonderfully supportive and capable husband with me when I had surgery in Brazil, the extra support that I got from my old high school friends who arrived just after I got out of surgery was immeasurable. They stayed for over two weeks and enabled hubby and I to really enjoy the remaining recuperation time we spent there. Hard to believe, but we actually had a great time!

Just to have someone else to chat with, a friendly familiar face with whom to laugh, cry and blow off steam and take my mind off things....I couldn't have done it without all of them...and I'm a pretty independent ol' biddy I wish that Sandra had the opportunity to have that same support, and also hope that others don't have to travel alone.

Sharing these stories do serve a purpose, even if they aren't all rosy and sweet at the time.....