Virtua's Performed Hundreds Of Surgeries Amid Pandemic

Hundreds of South Jersey residents have received joint replacements and other elective procedures through the Virtua Health System since New Jersey lifted its two-month ban on such care due to the coronavirus pandemic, officials with the hospital said Wednesday morning.

One of those people is Betty Kucowski, a Chesterfield woman who had knee replacement surgery in Voorhees in early June.

“I trust my surgeon,” the retired teacher said. “I figured if he’s going to be there, then it’s safe for me to be there.”

“People are seeing that it’s safe to have surgery and other types of care at Virtua facilities,” Virtua Health Program Director Dr. Howard Winter said.

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Winter pointed to Virtua’s long list of precautions — from testing all surgical patients, to masking everyone, to having fewer patients in facilities at the same time — that protect everyone from the coronavirus.

As of Wednesday morning, Virtua doctors had performed more than 700 orthopedic surgeries — including 340 joint replacements — since May 27, when New Jersey allowed these procedures to resume.

Winter warned that delaying surgery and other care can be dangerous. For example, putting off a joint replacement for too long can cause the joint to deteriorate further, making surgery more difficult. Eventually, a person could lose the ability to walk and do other daily activities, which could lead to further health problems.

Kucowski said her right knee had gotten so bad that she didn’t feel safe going up and down the steps. Her children were concerned about her going to the hospital in the middle of a pandemic, but she got her surgery done anyway.

She called her time at JRI, which included an overnight stay, “excellent” and said she felt “totally safe.”

She has now returned to her active lifestyle, which includes socially distanced outdoor line-dancing, making big batches of jam for friends and family, and regularly driving almost an hour to visit her granddaughter.

“I’m up to 5,000 steps a day walking. I don’t feel limited at all,” Kucowski said. “Everything [at Virtua JRI] was very positive. I was treated very kindly.”

To learn more about health and safety precautions at Virtua Health, visit Virtua’s Elective Surgeries and Procedures web page. To make an appointment, call Virtua at 888-847-8823 or 888-VIRTUA-3.

See related: NJ Coronavirus, Reopen Updates: Here's What You Need To Know