Sur­gi­cal Services

General surgery is a surgical subspecialty that focuses predominantly on abdominal contents including the esophagus, stomach, small bowel, colon, liver, pancreas, gallbladder, and thyroid. General surgery also covers diseases involving the skin, breast, soft tissue, and hernias.

• Thoracic
• Colorectal
• Vascular
• Gastrointestinal
• Trauma
• Endocrine
• Critical care
• Laparoscopic
• Minimally invasive surgery

Onslow’s Surgical Pavilion offers our surgeons modern operating suites and state-of-the-art video-assisted surgical equipment to provide minimally invasive surgery for major (and minor) orthopedic procedures.

Minimally invasive spine surgery refers to the same surgical procedures that can be performed using traditional open techniques, but with a smaller incision. This approach is often referred to as minimal access surgery rather than minimal surgery. Specially designed instruments are utilized in minimally invasive spine surgery, allowing access to the spine through small incisions. This results in reduced muscle dissection, decreased morbidity, and less trauma related to exposure.

• Artificial disc replacement
• Lumbar fusion
• Microdiscectomy

Gynecology surgery includes any surgical procedure that involves the organs and structure of the female pelvic region: the uterus, ovaries, cervix, fallopian tubes, vagina and vulva.

• You will receive a call from scheduling/ registration to verify the correct spelling of your name, address, and to review your insurance information.
• You will be called the day before your procedure with your arrival time, which will be about 2 hours prior to your scheduled procedure start time. For your safety, during this time you will meet many members of your care team. An anesthesia provider who sees all our patients will meet with you to talk about your anesthesia plan and to answer questions you may have about your anesthesia.
• If you have a rash, fever, cold, nausea, or vomiting within 24 hours prior to your surgery, please call your surgeon. It may mean that your surgery will need to be postponed.

The Morning of Your Procedure

• Adults should not eat or drink anything after 12 a.m. (midnight), unless otherwise directed.
• Wear clean and comfortable clothes for discharge.
  • For shoulder surgeries, please bring an oversized T-shirt that you can wear for discharge.
  • Loose jogging pants, sweatpants, or shorts work well for large foot or leg dressings.
  • The hospital will provide a gown and a pair of nonskid socks to wear during your stay.
• Take off all jewelry, including all body piercings. You will be asked to remove these items and any hairpins, hairclips and watches prior to surgery.
• Leave all valuables at home.
• Brush your teeth. Do not swallow the water.
• You will be asked to remove your contacts, glasses, dentures, hearing aids and/or partials before surgery. We will give you a container if you have dentures or a partial to be removed. Please bring a container for your contacts and a case for your glasses.
• If you use an insulin pump, home oxygen, or have an ostomy, bring any necessary supplies with you.
• If you have any implanted devices with an external controller like a spinal cord stimulator, please bring the controller with you to the hospital.
• If you are spending the night, please leave your overnight bag in the car. Your support person can get it later when you go to your room.
• For leg, knee and foot surgery.
  • If you have crutches or a walker, bring them with you.
  • Wear sturdy shoes, for example, tennis shoes or loafers.
  • A good comfort measure for the ride home is elevating your leg on 1 or 2 pillows.

• After your procedure, you will be in the Post Anesthesia Care Unit, also called PACU or Recovery Room. Recovery time varies for each patient. Family members are not usually permitted in this area. Exceptions are sometimes made, such as pediatrics patients.
• After recovery in the PACU, you will return to Ambulatory Surgery Unit (ASU) if you are going to be discharged. Family members and/or your driver will then be asked to join you.

• Discharge instructions will be reviewed with you, your responsible adult driver or family member, who must be at least 18 or older. You will be given a copy of your discharge instructions covering your recovery, pain, nausea, and any signs of postop infections. Signs of infection to look for are redness, swelling, pain, bleeding and increased warmth around the incision. Fever and chills may also be present. If you have any of these symptoms, please report them to your surgeon.
• Your surgeon may provide you with specific instructions to help your recovery that are specific to your surgery and outcomes.
• Any prescriptions the surgeon may prescribe will be sent electronically to your pharmacy of choice.
• Do not drive or use any complicated machinery for 24 hours.
• Do not make important decisions or sign any legal documents for 24 hours.
• You will need to have someone stay with you that is 18 years of age or older for 24 hours. If you have any problems once you are at home, go to your nearest emergency room or call your surgeon's office. Your surgeon's phone number can be found on your discharge instructions inside the discharge folder.

You will need to have a driver who is 18 years or older to get your discharge instructions, take you home, and stay with you the first 24 hours after surgery. You cannot drive yourself or be left alone.

• We ask that the driver stay at the hospital during your surgery in case the surgical team or the surgeon/physician needs to talk with him or her about your care.
• For your safety, we will not allow you to use a taxicab, Uber, or Lyft to go home, unless a responsible adult rides with you. This does not include the driver of the car service.

• ADULTS SHOULD NOT EAT OR DRINK ANYTHING AFTER 12 A.M. (midnight) THE NIGHT BEFORE AND UP TO THE TIME OF SURGERY, unless instructed to do so. This includes candy, gum, mints, water, black coffee, cough drops, snuff or chewing tobacco. Failure to follow these instructions may cause your procedure to be canceled.
• Do NOT smoke, vape, chew tobacco, drink alcohol, or use illegal drugs for 24 hours before your procedure.
• Take a shower or bath and shampoo the night before and/or the morning of surgery. If you are provided special soap, use soap as instructed (see instructions at the back of this booklet).
• After showering, DO NOT apply makeup, deodorant, lotion, powder or perfumes.
• Prior to surgery, please make sure clean bedsheets are put on your bed.
• Wear clean pajamas when you get home after surgery.
• Do NOT shave or wax the area near your procedural site within 72 hours of your procedure.
• Remove any colored nail polish. Only clear polish is acceptable.
• For the sake of your privacy and the limited space in the surgical preparation rooms, no more than two visitors will be able to accompany you in the surgical preop and postop areas. Let family and friends know that you will be at the hospital for a brief time and they should plan to visit you at home.
• Please leave large sums of money at home.
• Children are not allowed in pre-op area. They will need to stay in the lobby with a responsible parent or guardian.