While we all love our new, huge laminar flow scoliosis operating room at Duke Raleigh Hospital, the best thing about our operating room is our PEOPLE. Since I moved my spine practice from “Big Duke”, Duke Medical Center, to “Little Duke”, at Duke Raleigh Hospital, I have been blessed with a very devoted group of physician assistants, nurses, scrub techs, nurse assistants, clinical assistants, radiographic technologists, CRNA’s, Cell Saver Technologists, anesthesiologists, physical and occupational therapists, case managers, hospitalists, and administrative staff as well as the Hey Clinic office team right next door to the Duke Raleigh Hospital. During my first few weeks at Duke Raleigh Hospital almost three years ago now, I was “adopted” by “Nurse Kelly” and “Nurse Leslie”, as well as scrub tech “Sandra” and “Sheila” who became the core of my “A-Team.” This “A-Team has been joined by several others, including my 2 wonderful PA’s Jac and Brit, as well as “Brother Lawrence” pictured above with Brit, Sandra, and Kelly after a day in surgery in our new room. Cell Saver Experts include Tamika and Debbie and others. Our “A-Team” has done literally hundreds upon hundreds of complex scoliosis and reconstructive spine surgeries with me, as well as the occasional “cupcake” disc herniation in the neck or low back, or simple laminectomy (“who’s got the “Easy Button”! 🙂 ). We have become a close-knit team, who enjoy working together, and know how to anticipate each other’s moves. This allows us to complete complex spinal surgery in a fraction of the time, with less blood loss, and less stress, and a better final outcome.
What has been interesting to see over the past few years is how our focus on quality improvement and excellence has become a culture of excellence which others interested in excellence want to be a part of — to be on a winning team.
Over the past three years, we have cared for patients from age 11 up through age 96, from 32 States, including California and Hawaii and New York, and 4 International Countries, including Stockholm, Sweden and United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Nairobi, Kenya. Sometimes it is worth the trip to find the right team, and we have a great team here, both at Hey Clinic, and next door at Duke Raleigh Hospital. I also have a great team over at WakeMed, where I perform surgery on the smaller children, especially smaller children with multiple medical problems.
I thank God for our wonderful teams. You guys are my second family. We care for the patients and their families, we care for each other, and we have some fun during the process while we learn something every day.
Dr. Lloyd Hey
Hey Clinic for Scoliosis and Spine Surgery
Raleigh, NC — USA
http://www.heyclinic.com