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How Your Hip Works | Joint Camp
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Hip

How Your Hip Works

The hip joint is one of the body’s largest weight-bearing joints. It’s a ball-and-socket joint. This helps the hip remain stable even during twisting and extreme ranges of motion. A healthy hip joint allows you to walk, squat, and turn without pain.

A Healthy Hip

The hip joint is formed where the rounded head of the thighbone (femur) joins the pelvic bone. The joint is covered with tissue and powered by large muscles. When all of the parts listed below are healthy, a hip should move easily.

Cartilage

Cartilage is a layer of smooth tissue. It covers the ball of the thighbone, and lines the socket of the pelvic bone. Healthy cartilage absorbs stress and allows the ball to glide easily in the socket.

Muscles

Muscles power the hip and leg for movement.

Tendons

Tendons attach the muscles to the bones.
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Joint Camp

A program is available for patients having total knee and total hip replacements. This program is available only at Avera McKennan Hospital and emphasizes education and wellness. The surgeons of Orthopedic Institute in connection with Avera McKennan Hospital have developed the Total Joint Center, also referred to as Joint Camp.

Surgeries are scheduled for Mondays and Tuesdays, with patients typically being discharged to their own homes, not another facility or step-down unit, on Thursdays and Fridays. Therapy is delivered in a group setting on the unit, which facilitates camaraderie among the patients. In addition to the therapists working with the patients, each patient has a coach who helps with the recovery. Coaches may be a family member, friend or volunteer. Patients stay in a designated wing of the hospital on the orthopedic unit.

Emphasis on patient education occurs before and after surgery. Patients are given a notebook before surgery and are expected to attend a class. Pre-op education prepares the patient for the surgery, hospitalization, rehabilitation and return to functional activities. Every day at Joint Camp patients receive newsletters with updates on what to expect. Prior to going home, patients are giving videos and handouts explaining what to expect in the days ahead.

Surgeons and staff of Joint Camp believe that patients requiring total joint replacements are often in good overall health. Therefore, there is a wellness approach in the care that is provided. Patients are expected to dress in their own clothes, (loose-fitting) not hospital gowns. Lunches are eaten in the dining area with other campers and coaches.

If you are interested in Joint Camp, visit with your surgeon at Orthopedic Institute to determine if this experience is right for you.
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