Drafting Post-Operative Recovery Instructions

The problem

Post-operative recovery instructions need to be specific, readable, and right. They cover weight-bearing status, wound care, physiotherapy exercises, activity restrictions, medication guidance, and warning signs that should bring the patient back early. Writing them individually for each patient is time-consuming. Using a generic printed sheet often means the instructions do not match this patient's specific procedure, surgical approach, or comorbidities.

Patients who do not understand their recovery instructions make more avoidable calls to your rooms. Some re-attend unnecessarily. Some do not attend when they should.

How AI helps

An AI tool can draft a complete set of post-operative recovery instructions from a brief description of the procedure and the key clinical parameters you specify. You tell the tool: what was done, what the weight-bearing status is, what wound care is needed, what physiotherapy milestones to include, and what symptoms should prompt early return. The tool drafts. You review the clinical content against your surgical protocol, adjust anything that does not fit, and use it.

The tool is especially useful for procedures you perform frequently — total knee replacement, total hip replacement, rotator cuff repair, anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction — where the structure of the instructions is consistent but the specific details need to be tailored to each patient.

A real example

Mr David is a consultant orthopaedic surgeon who performs around forty total hip replacements per year. His current post-operative instruction sheet is three years old and does not reflect his current surgical approach, which now uses a posterior approach with capsular repair that allows earlier mobilisation than the original instructions suggest. Patients are being given unnecessarily conservative guidance.

He opens Claude and types:

Draft post-operative recovery instructions for a patient who has just 
had a total hip replacement using a posterior approach with capsular 
repair. The patient is a man in his mid-sixties who is otherwise fit. 
He lives with his partner.

Include:
- Weight-bearing status: full weight-bearing with walking aid from day one
- Wound care: waterproof dressing in place, no bathing until wound healed
- Activity: no hip flexion beyond 90 degrees for 6 weeks, no crossing legs, 
  no low chairs
- Physiotherapy: already referred, first appointment within 2 weeks
- Driving: not for 6 weeks, or until safe to perform an emergency stop
- Return to work: desk work 4–6 weeks, physical work to be discussed
- Warning signs: fever, increasing wound redness or discharge, 
  sudden leg swelling, severe worsening pain

Use plain English, short sentences, numbered lists. Maximum 500 words.

The tool produces a structured instruction sheet. Mr David reads it against his unit's current protocol. He adjusts the driving guidance — his anaesthetic department has a slightly different standard — and adds a sentence about the importance of informing his insurance provider. He adds the physiotherapy department contact number. The sheet is ready in eight minutes.

Try it yourself

Things to watch for

The tool does not know your surgical protocol. Weight-bearing status, hip precautions, driving restrictions, and physiotherapy milestones vary by surgeon, approach, and unit. The tool will draft based on what you tell it. If your prompt is incomplete, the instructions will be incomplete. Always review against your own protocol.

Warning signs must be clinically verified. The section on symptoms requiring urgent contact is the most safety-critical part of any post-operative instruction document. Read it carefully and ensure it matches your unit's escalation guidance and your own clinical standards.

Reading level requires checking. Patients recovering from major joint surgery are often elderly, may be on analgesics that affect concentration, and may be reading the instructions at home without you present. Check the reading level is appropriate. Ask the tool to simplify if needed.

Do not omit the medication section. The prompt above does not include medication guidance. This is intentional — medication instructions should come from the prescribing team and pharmacy, not an AI tool. Make sure medication guidance is provided through your normal clinical channels.

Remember: AI is a helpful assistant, not a clinician. You make the call.