I came to Duke when my doctor in Wilmington found a bone mass behind my knee. I saw Dr. Brigman, and I loved him.

When he realized it wasn’t cancer and that I needed knee surgery, he said, “See my friend, Dr. Wellman.”

Dr. Wellman did a total knee replacement because my knee had such severe rheumatoid arthritis. I was only in the hospital for four days, and it was a lot easier and not as scary as that I thought it was going to be.

It's only been a month, and I'm already up and walking. I’m not pain-free yet, but I can tell I’m well on my way. It’s a different pain than it was before, so I know that it’s actually on the mend.

Questions Answered, Fears Relieved

Dr. Wellman and Dr. Brigman are both wonderful. If you have any questions, they are both more than willing  to help you and answer your questions.

This is big surgery, so a lot of times I didn’t even know what I was supposed to be asking them, and they kind of directed me to ask the right things. They suggested to me questions that other people have and sort of asked questions for me.

Everyone at Duke has been wonderful, from the cleaning people to the doctors, everybody. I’ve had no trouble with anyone. Everyone’s been friendly and more than willing to help. They go out of their way to stop and make sure you know where you’re going and see if you need help.

Seamless Transition of Care

My care between Duke and back home in Wilmington has been seamless. The doctors at Duke just called over to the physical therapists at Wilmington and they arranged everything through faxes and phone calls, and I haven’t had to do anything.