Should I be concerned about jaw surgery at a teaching hospital...?

[CW1994]

I was referred to the orthodontist at a teaching hospital (at least I think that's what it is) to discuss braces/underbite surgery. I asked him about cost and if it was covered by NHS to which he simply replied "We don't charge - it's all free".

I didn't ask him at the time, but I am becoming more and more concerned that the reason that it is free is not because it is covered by the NHS but rather because it is a teaching hospital and it will be students who are let loose on me!

Is this something I should be concerned about?

[gruntled]

I don't know that much about teaching hospitals, but my mum had major abdominal surgery at a teaching hospital and there were no setbacks whatsoever. In fact I'm pretty sure she was given more attention and care BECAUSE it was a teaching hospital. THIS IS SPAM PLEASE REPORT IT TO THE ADMINISTRATOR. THIS IS SPAM PLEASE REPORT IT TO THE ADMINISTRATOR. THIS IS SPAM PLEASE REPORT IT TO THE ADMINISTRATOR. THIS IS SPAM PLEASE REPORT IT TO THE ADMINISTRATOR. they don't let the students do anything on you besides the basics like taking blood pressure. Occasionally there'll be a student sitting in on a check up or consultation and that's about it.


Why do you think your treatment won't be covered by the NHS? Is your underbite very minor? I just had treatment on the NHS but I had quite a severe underbite.

[kitkat1]

HI,
I've got braces and will be having jaw surgery soon. I'm in the UK and my treatment is being covered by the NHS.. I go for my adjustments at 1 hospital, and will be having my surgery at the larger hospital were they have the A&E etc, both are NHS teaching hospitals
I'm 14 months into my treatment, and I've had a trainee do my adjustment just once . They were very clear she was a trainee and I had to sign a consent form before she was allowed to do anything.
I personally do not mind, everybody has to learn somehow, and like the previous poster said, there is a lot of attention, maybe more, because it's a teaching hospital. Everything has to be supervised and double checked by a consultant.
I'm sure you have nothing to worry about, they are not going to risk your safety because students and trainees may be involved in your treatment at some point.

[sirwired]

I know things are different in the UK vs. the US, but mine was done at a teaching hospital here. I was nominally a patient of the professor, but a resident was assigned to duplicate all the pre-op work the professor did, and he was in the surgical suite. The professor will assign the resident tasks he/she thinks the resident is capable of performing. (i.e. a 1st-year resident gets to do tasks that might ordinarily be done by a nurse, or maybe cauterize a vessel or two. A senior resident might do the whole operation while the professor looks over his/her shoulder.)

My surgery (a 2-piece LeFort turned out fine) although I will admit I didn't like the resident very much; he had a lot to learn about interacting with patients. The professor was much nicer.

[34mSarpe]

I'm in the U.S. and have had all my dental related work done at teaching hospitals, for the sake of economics. I do have health insurance, but it has a 2500$ deductible and I have no dental coverage. My orthodontist/dental school (Harvard medical school) has a relationship with a large hospital (Massachusetts general hospital) and the "students" collaborate between the two facility's on a case like mine. I needed sarpe.

Don't think that the "students" aren't experienced/skilled/safe, they are all, by nature smart people. They are heavily supervised by senior residents and discuss all parts of any case with senior faculty.

The ONLY negative/non-positive I've encountered is a bit of a lack of a "bedside manor" I think they'll develop that with time. As a patient in this scenario you need to be your own advocate, in the case that you end up seeing different students/residents during your treatment. I'm hoping my treatment is complete before the resident/student who is doing my orthodontics graduates.

[snapdresser]

My surgery was done at a "teaching hospital", I guess it would be considered. It's not owned by a university, but they do have residency programs there, and even students on rotation come through. During my operation there were a solid dozen people in the room. The residents helped with the more mundane parts of my operation (to my knowledge) and the students on rotation were allowed to do some of the scut work, I guess, including attempting to run an arterial line. They poked me 5 times trying to do it, none of the attempts successful. A resident stepped in and ran the A-line in my other arm. The arm they poked 5 times had a pretty massive bruise all up the forearm post-op. It took 4 or 5 weeks for the bruise to completely disappear. As far as I can tell, that was the only impact that having my surgery at a "teaching hospital" had.

[uncleezno]

My surgery's being performed at a 'Teaching Hospital' and I have no worries. My doc is the top guy in the state, and he's mega-published all over. You know what others hospitals are teaching hospitals? The Mayo Clinic. Cincinnati Children's Hospital, the best pediatric hospital in the country. University of Chicago Medical Center, Yale Hospital, Mass General - Harvard. Basically the biggest and best hospitals in even smaller urban areas are going to be teaching hospitals, and you'll be just fine. Also worth considering - getting in to an OMFS residency is incredibly difficult to do, and the residents might be jerks, but they're usually pretty competent. You'll do great!