General Information

At the Hospital

• Your procedure will be at Surgical Day Care, Mount Saint Joseph Hospital, 3080 Prince Edward Street, Vancouver, BC (on the Kingsway side of the building next to Emergency).
• You must arrange for an adult to accompany you home after the procedure, failure to arrange a ride will result in cancellation. Going home alone by taxi is not acceptable.
• The nurse will call your contact person after surgery to let them know when to pick you up.

Post-Surgery Follow-Up Appointment

• Please call our office at (604) 559-8811 (Mon-Fri 9am-5pm, Lunch break 12:30-1:30pm) within 3 business days to book your post-surgery follow-up appointment. Your surgeon will advise you on the day of surgery when you will be seen for follow-up.
• If you have any concerns, please do not hesitate to contact our office. 

Post-Surgery Pain Control

• It is normal to have some pain and discomfort at the surgery site after surgery.
• Pain and discomfort at the surgical site will improve gradually in the next 7 days. You will need to take pain medications to provide comfort. It is expected to take longer to recover from anal procedures, usually about 14-21 days.
• Your surgeon will provide you with instructions for post-surgery pain control. Generally, you could start with 2 tablets of Tylenol (acetaminophen 325mg or 500mg for extra strength) every 6 hours regularly for the first 3 days after surgery. You may add 1 tablet of Advil (ibuprofen 200mg or 400mg for extra strength), about 3 hours after you took the Tylenol.
• It is important that you take your pain medication regularly on schedule. Do not wait until it is too painful before taking your pain medication.
• You may use the prescribed pain medication as needed, however, the prescribed stronger pain medication will have side effects. If you need to use the prescribed pain medication, you will need to pay attention to your diet to avoid constipation. One of the side effects of the prescribed pain medications is constipation. You may need to use a stool softener or laxatives to keep your stool soft.
• You may apply a cold compress to the surgical site for comfort.
• If the pain at the surgical site has been progressively worse after the first 5 days from the surgery despite taking pain medications, you should contact our office.

Post-Surgery Diet

• It is important to eat properly to help your recovery after surgery.
• The following booklets provide general information on how to improve your diet after surgery. If you had major surgery of the colon and stomach, you will need to follow the specific dietary recommendations in the colon surgery or stomach surgery sections.

► Fibre for bowel regularity

Information sheet on how to improve your diet to help to regulate your bowel habit

► Nutrition for wound healing

Information booklet on how to improve your diet to help wound healing after surgery

Recovery After Different Types of Surgery

• Hernia Surgery
• Gallbladder Surgery
• Anal / Hemorrhoid Surgery
• Other Minor Surgery / Same Day Surgery
• Colon Surgery
• Stomach Surgery
• Surgical Drain Care

After Hernia Surgery

• Your surgeon will provide you with specific information about wound care on the day of the procedure.
• Generally, there will be two layers of dressing. You need to remove the outer plastic layer of the dressings about 2-4 days after surgery. The inner layer is a special white tape called Steri-Strips which will usually fall off on their own. Photographs of the dressings.
• The sutures are usually absorbable and there is no need to remove any stitches. There are selected cases that your surgeon might use non-absorbable stitches or staples that will require removal. You will be provided with specific instructions if that is the case.
• It is normal to have some bruising and swelling at the surgical site. You should apply cold compress to area for comfort. It will help with the swelling. If you have significant increased swelling with increasing pain after 3 days, you should contact our office first, but most likely, you will need to go to the emergency department at Mount Saint Joseph Hospital for an urgent assessment.
• Please see the section above on post-surgery pain control
• The booklets below provide you with general post-surgery care information

► After an open hernia repair of inguinal, femoral, or umbilical hernia – discharge instructions

Information booklet on what to expect after an open hernia repair of inguinal, femoral, or umbilical hernia

► After laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair – discharge instructions

Information booklet on what to expect after a laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair

► Going home after hernia surgery

Information booklet on what to do when you are recovering from hernia repair

After Gallbladder Surgery

• Your surgeon will provide you with specific information about post-surgery care on the day of the procedure.
• Generally, there will be two layers of dressing. You need to remove the outer plastic layer of the dressings about 2-4 days after surgery. The inner layer is a special white tape called Steri-Strips which will usually fall off on their own. Photographs of the dressings.
• The sutures are usually absorbable and there is no need to remove any stitches.
• You may not have an appetite for about 1-2 days after surgery. This is normal. Your body is trying to recover from the anesthetic and surgery. You should start with a light fluid diet and progress to solids as you can tolerate.
• Once you are feeling much better, which usually takes about 7 days, there are no dietary restrictions.
• Please see the section above on post-surgery pain control.
• The booklet below provide you with general post-surgery care information after gallbladder surgery.

► Laparoscopic gallbladder removal (cholecystectomy) – discharge instructions

Information booklet on what to expect after laparoscopic gallbladder removal (cholecystectomy)

After Hemorrhoid, Anal Fistula, or Other Anal Procedures

• Your surgeon will provide you with specific information about post- surgery care on the day of the procedure.
• There might be special packing material in the anus after hemorrhoid surgery. You do not need to remove the packing. It will come out during your first bowel movement.
• Depending on the type and extent of the procedure, your surgeon may arrange community nursing to help with dressing change and wound care.
• You should perform a sitz bath (sit in a tub with warm water for 5 minutes) at least twice a day.
• You should start with a light fluid diet and progress to solids as you can tolerate. There are no dietary restrictions but you should pay attention to your diet and have plenty of fiber and fluids to prevent constipation. You may need to use laxatives recommended by your surgeon to prevent constipation.
• It is normal to have pain in the anal area after surgery, particularly after hemorrhoid surgery. There will likely be significant pain during your bowel movement. It is essential to keep your stool soft. It will improve gradually in the next 2-3 weeks. You will need to take pain medications to provide comfort.
• Please see the section above on post-surgery pain control.
• The booklet below provide you with general post-surgery care information after anal surgery.

► Going home after anal surgery

Information booklet on what to expect after anal surgery, e.g. hemorrhoidectomy (surgery for hemorrhoids), anal fistulotomy (surgery to treat anal fistula), drainage of anal abscess (surgery to treat infection around the anal area)

After Other Minor Surgery / Same Day Surgery

• Your surgeon will provide you with specific information about post-surgery care on the day of the procedure.
• Generally, there will be two layers of dressing. You need to remove the outer plastic layer of the dressings about 2-4 days after surgery. The inner layer is a special white tape called Steri-Strips which will usually fall off on their own. Photographs of the dressings.
• The sutures are usually absorbable and there is no need to remove any stitches. There are selected cases that your surgeon might use non-absorbable stitches or staples that will require removal. You will be provided with specific instructions if that is the case.
• It is normal to have some bruising and swelling at the surgical site. You should apply a cold compress to area for comfort. It will also help with the swelling. If you have significant swelling with increasing pain, you should contact our office first, but most likely, you will need to go to the emergency department at Mount Saint Joseph Hospital for an urgent assessment.
• Please see the section above on post-surgery pain control

After Colon Surgery

• You had colon surgery. This is a major abdominal surgery. Every case is unique. Your surgeon would have provided you with specific instructions for post-surgery care.
• Your initial diet will be different after colon surgery. You will need to be on a low residue diet for about 2 weeks.
• You will be able to gradually return to have regular diet after the initial few weeks of recovery.
• The booklet below provides general information on how to recover from colon surgery.

► Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) for Colon Surgery | English | 中文 |

Information booklet on what to expect, how to prepare for and recover from colon surgery

After Stomach Surgery

• You had stomach surgery. This is a major abdominal surgery. Every case is unique. Your surgeon would have provided you with specific instructions for post-surgery care.
• Depending on the extent of your surgery, you will likely need to change your eating habits after stomach surgery.
• The booklets below provide general information on how to recover from stomach surgery and the general dietary recommendations.

► Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) for Stomach Surgery (Gastrectomy)

Information sheet on what to expect, how to prepare for and recover from stomach surgery

► Diet After Gastric Surgery

Information on how to change your diet after stomach surgery

Surgical Drain Care

• The Jackson-Pratt or JP drain is a commonly used drain system to help to manage fluids in the deep surgical site. It will drain out any residue fluid or infection. It also helps the surgeon to monitor the deep surgical site. Photograph of a JP drain.
• Your surgeon would have explained to you why the JP drain is needed.
• Before you leave the hospital, the nurse will teach you how to empty the drain at home. You will need to record the amount of drainage, usually twice a day, when you empty the drain.
• Your surgeon may have arranged community nurses to help with drain care.

► Jackson-Pratt wound drainage system – patient instruction guide

Information booklet on how to care for the surgical drainage tube at home after surgery