Barts and The London Orthopaedic Centre | For patients | What to expect
What to expect
Your referral
Your GP or hospital doctor will refer you to Barts and The London Orthopaedic Centre, either using the Choose and Book system or by letter (posted or faxed). Once the referral has been received, you will be contacted to choose a suitable date and time for your initial appointment.
Your first appointment
At your outpatient appointment, you will meet one of our consultants who will assess your condition. If necessary, tests may be taken (such as x-rays, blood tests) to diagnose your condition and to help us determine appropriate treatment plans.
Our main outpatient department (fracture clinic) is based on the ground floor at The Royal London Hospital, next to the Accident & Emergency Department.
If you require surgery, a date will be arranged and you will be asked to attend a pre-admission clinic.
Brian Roper Centre
This is our dedicated paediatric orthopaedic clinic. It is on the ground floor of the east wing of the Royal London Hospital. All our children’s orthopaedic clinics are held here, including the children’s fracture clinics and the gait lab. There is a dedicated plaster room for children here and the Brian Roper Centre is conveniently located close to paediatric x-ray.
Fracture clinic
If you have a bone fracture, your GP will refer you directly to the fracture clinic where you will be seen by one of our specialists. Depending on the type of treatment required, you may need to attend more than one appointment at the fracture clinic. Please have your appointment letter or card ready to give to our receptionist when you come to the fracture clinic. Without this, your booking-in process may be longer than necessary.
Pre-admission clinic
If you require orthopaedic surgery, you will be given an appointment to attend our pre-admission clinic. This appointment is to establish your suitability and fitness for surgery. It is also an opportunity for you to find out exactly what is involved in the surgery and for you to ask questions.
Admission into hospital
Depending on the type of surgery you are having, you will either be admitted the day before or on the day of your surgery. Our aim is to keep you in hospital for the shortest time possible, whilst ensuring that you are sufficiently recovered before returning home.
We have two main adult orthopaedic wards; Charrington and Croft ward. Croft ward is our adult elective orthopaedic ward. All patients admitted onto this ward are screened for MRSA and we have no cases of MRSA on Croft ward.
Children are admitted onto the Grosvenor B children’s ward.
Follow-up appointments
After your surgery, or other treatments, you may be asked to come back into hospital for follow-up care. This care is provided by a range of professionals, from consultants and nurses through to physiotherapists and occupational therapists.
If at any stage during your care you have any questions or concerns, please do ask as our staff will always take the time to listen.
Emergency treatment
Patients that have sustained injuries and are brought into hospital by ambulance (or air ambulance) will initially be seen, and stabilised if required, in Accident and Emergency. If a patient has multiple injuries, they will be treated by our Trauma team, which includes our specialist orthopaedic surgeons. These patients (once stabilised) usually stay on Harrison Ward, on the 4th floor of The Royal London Hospital.
