Video: Robotic hysterectomy patient testimonials

Patient story - Jean Odell

Jean Odell knew she needed to make a change. “I had these terrible cramps, even after a uterine ablation which was supposed to end the problem,” she recalls. When her doctor suggested a hysterectomy, Jean was worried about the recuperation time. “I knew it would be a relief to have it done. But it was not as though I would be gone for a week. I knew it would be difficult to let go of my work responsibilities for a long stretch of time. But then I found out about robotic surgery.”

HealthEast’s robot-assisted da Vinci® Surgical System allows doctors to perform complex surgeries with great precision and control, and in a much less invasive way than traditional surgeries. In Jean’s case, it meant a hysterectomy with a manageable recovery timeline. “I thought, being back to work within two to three weeks wouldn’t be so bad. It’s still a major surgery, but once I learned that it was less invasive, it put me at a much higher comfort level.”

Jean decided to have her hysterectomy at St. John’s Hospital on December 14. “I didn’t sleep a whole lot the night before — I was a little nervous. But from the time I walked in the door and met the gal in the admitting office, I felt at ease. I never knew there were so many people involved in a one-hour surgery, but every single one of them made me feel so comfortable.”

“When they were wheeling me in, I was really interested in seeing the robotic machine,” recalls Jean, “but once I got a sedative to relax me, well, all I remember is waking up. What’s remarkable is how I had my surgery in the morning, and I was walking by dinnertime. The staff was so kind about checking on me regularly, and would ask every couple of hours how I rated my pain on a scale of one to 10. I was never more than a three or a four.”

“I left the hospital on the 15th — the very next day — and I felt pretty good walking out of there,” said Jean. “People I know who had traditional hysterectomies said, ‘Be sure to take it easy, you’ll be so tired.’ But I never was. I started working from home the day after that on a laptop, and went back to work full time the beginning of the next month. I could tell when I needed to take a break here and there, but for the most part, I got right back to my life.”