As most of our clients will be all too aware The Fairfield surgical unit has been having a major refurbishment. No doubt many will also be familiar with the concept that whenever you have builders involved they are inevitably "behind schedule and over budget". We have been no exception to that "law of nature"

.Conversely, as a surgeon involved in the reconstruction of shattered bones I find myself on the other side of that perspective.

"Ginni", a 16 year old cat, was presented at Fairfield with a badly broken femur (thigh bone). His owner not unsurprisingly enquired as to the likely costs involved in the repair. The difficulty I have as a surgeon is that fundamentally my patients heal themselves. My involvement is creating an environment in which that process can occur. Using pins and wire I hoped to provide the fracture a sufficient period of stability to promote new bone production and stabilise the bone ends.

Clearly, with elderly patients the rate of recovery is slower and predicting when the repair is complete is not straightforward. I cannot lay blame with "Ginni" who was an exemplary patient nor his owner who did everything I asked. I did however err on the side of caution before removing his intramedullary pin to reveal his beautiful repaired leg. It was pointed out to me at that stage that I was "behind schedule and over budget". Fortunately for me "Ginni's " owner was a little more understanding than I had been!

Terry Dunne
BVMS, Cert SAO, MRCVS