Fast-Acting Surgical Pain Relief [Judy Smith]

I'm Judy Smith from Brookings, and I have very deep roots in Brookings, and I love this town.

What Brought You To Brookings Health System?

I keep my business in town every time I can. And I have a general practitioner whom I adore, Rebecca Vande Kop. And she's absolutely marvelous. And she recommended, when I went in to see her about the pain in my arm, that I see Dr. Nicolescu. Now, that takes a lot of practice to say, but he's a sweetheart.

How Bad Was Your Pain?

Pain is not a strong enough word. I've had carpal tunnel in my right hand and my left hand, the one we're talking about is my left hand. And it's like hot acid starts in your arm and works its way down and then rotates in and out of your hand. It'll wake you up in the middle of the night. Doesn't happen terribly often during the daytime, but it was just something that was not bearable. So I said, "I think I need to see somebody about it." And she recommended Dr. Nicolescu.

What Was Your Impression of Dr. Nicolescu?

Oh, I liked him. He was very nice. He was very patient. He answered all my questions. I always take a list of questions that I'm gonna ask whatever doctor I'm going to. I've learned to do that and mark them off, you know? So I gave it to his nurse. He'd never seen me before. And when he came in, he said, "Oh, I liked your love note." I thought, "I like this man." And he answered all my questions.

How Long Were You Suffering From the Pain?

Oh, probably a couple of months. I kept thinking it's gonna go away, but it didn't go away. And he did not want to do surgery. I mean, that was the last resort as far as he was concerned, which I appreciated. He said, "We'll try a brace." I tried that for two weeks, didn't do any good. He said, "We're beyond that." So then he explained the process of surgery.

Were You Nervous About the Surgery?

I've had 13 surgeries in my lifetime. It was just kind of one of...you know, he said, "It's an easy surgery, it lasts about 10, 15 minutes. The recovery is easy." So, when Dr. Nicolescu said, "You know, this is gonna be easy." I had therapy for three months with this hand, because it was into my palm. This one, there's a little tiny incision here, so he could go under both ways. No therapy. I had to be able to touch my thumb to each finger and make a fist. That was my therapy. I could do it five minutes after I woke up from surgery. And I have not had pain since. He said it could take a year to a year and a half. He said, "Bones and muscles heal fast. Nerves take sometimes a year, a year and a half." But he told my family, I was kind of out of it yet, that it was so tight in there that he said she'll probably have immediate relief. And I did. Never had it since.

How Was the Day of Surgery?

And everybody was very nice. The anesthesiologist introduced himself, the nurses, each one of 'em introduced themselves. They were very patient, and yeah, it was a good experience.

How Was Your Pain After Surgery?

I didn't have any pain. Well, you know, the incision, but that's nothing compared to hot acid going through your hand. You know, it really was not that painful. It was difficult. That was another thing the doctor told me. You can't lift more than a pound with your left hand for two weeks. That's a coffee cup full of coffee. And you have to keep it covered for two weeks. That's so minimal compared to painful therapy for months, you know? And I would practice, you know, my therapy such as it was. So it was, you know, just minimal pain. Afterwards, you know, it was nothing compared to other surgeries that I've had. And he told me it would be nothing. So...

How Does the Patient Portal Help You Communicate with Your Doctors?

I have 11 doctors on my portal and it is a miracle. Anything that happens or any of the things that I have wrong with me, I get on my portal, I send a message to my doctor because then they can answer it when they want to and send it back to me. And I have never had to wait more than 24 hours to have a message returned from my portal. That's important to me. Really important. If I go in and one doctor says, "Oh, let's see, you gave blood for Dr. Vandekop." So they look up and see what that was. Well, then you don't have to do that again. Okay, that's great, you know?

Why Did You Choose Surgery at Brookings Health System?

My husband's had several surgeries here. I've had cataract surgery here. He's going to next month. I do my business in town if I possibly can. And because my husband used to be in economic development, if you don't have good medical facility, people are not gonna live here. That's not an excuse in Brookings. You don't have that for an excuse. And especially, you know, it's important for people of all ages, but retired people had better be fairly close to a good medical facility. My husband was in the emergency room several times. It's less than a 10-minute drive from our house to the...you know, that's important. If we had to go to Sioux Falls for an emergency room, oh my, that can be fatal, you know? So it's just important that it's close by. It's convenient. It's convenient for my family, it's convenient for me. So that's why.