Hip Replacement: Rehab and Recovery Needs - Mini Updates in #13, #14

[lizzywednesday]

So, after starting to get his weight under control and actually seeing a doctor regularly (after IDK how many years), my 66-year-old dad is facing hip replacement surgery.

Next month.

As in, twenty-nine days from today.

While I knew he was going to the doctors (GP and podiatrist), I did not know how much pain he was actually in because Dad being in pain is my normal - he's always had pain from his ankles (limited range of motion due to double clubfoot & corrective surgeries as a youngster) and he's never really been the most fit individual due to the moving issues, but this is pain enough where it's limited his ability to work (price stickers & odds and ends at the grocery store, so a more physical job than his former incarnation at a bank) and he's using a cane.

He's prepping for his surgery and recovery, but my siblings and I don't think he's done enough planning for his care post-op. None of us are able to come help him during the day - I live ~2 hours south; my brother Joe lives in NYC and doesn't have a car; my brother Ger & his family have already done more than their fair share by allowing him to live rent-free at their home for most of a year after his (that is, Dad's) ex-wife kicked him out (also my SIL works for the Red Cross and may be deployed at any time if another hurricane hits PR); and my sister has maxed out her PTO, has a partner who travels for work (he's a truck driver), and 3 young kids (9, 6, and 2.5.)

We are asking all kinds of questions and he doesn't have a plan.

Allow me to repeat that: he. doesn't. have. a. plan.

None of this surprises me, but it is sending me into a mild panic that he will be stuck in his apartment, need help, and nobody will be able to get to him. And somehow my brother Ger, sister, and I will be blamed, despite all of the above reasoning why we cannot help more.

I have offered to come up next week to help him put his apartment in order and assemble his bedframe, but I can't be on call for emergencies; it's just not practical.

So ... what else do I need to ask Dad about his recovery plans and needs so that he actually DOES it?