Wellness Travels

I went to Poland (Katowice) to have hip surgery at the Sanvimed Clinic. Their policy is to keep you in the clinic for two weeks, with total care post-operatively.

You are met at the airport by taxi and returned there by taxi. Nurses look after you and administer painkillers etc. Most of the staff speak English adequately and where not, a translator is available. Excellent. All this cost me £7,500.

I live in Canada and had been suffering from osteoarthritis in my left shoulder for a number of years. After trying various types of alternate solutions such as physiotherapy, visco-supplementation and cortisone injections, the conclusion was reached with the doctors involved that a full shoulder replacement surgery was the best, if not the only, solution to regain life quality moving forward. I got referred to an orthopedic surgeon, but was not getting any call back, and was unable to find out when I could possibly get that call, let alone go through the surgery.

I began to search on the Web for organizations providing private medical services abroad. There are many out there, advertising services in many different countries. I reached out to several of them through their sites. Wellness Travels was the only one which, in my opinion, demonstrated a serious and human approach. Even though the clinic is located in a fairly remote country (Lithuania), this was not a deterrent since I exchanged daily for several weeks with a Lithuanian contact in Canada. All my questions and concerns were addressed throughout those exchanges. In addition, I had consultations with a very experienced Canadian based orthopedic surgeon, who performed thousands of surgeries throughout his career, and took the time to travel to the clinic, meet the surgeons and inspect the facilities thoroughly. He went to the extent of climbing up to the roof to verify the ventilation systems.

With the coordinator we scheduled a date for the surgery and determined the best travel plans. When I finally got there, the clinic was exactly as what I saw on their website and what the doctor told me: immaculate and as modern as any other world class facility.
From a pricing perspective, the cost was very reasonable, compared to the those advertised by the other sites. The surgery and rehab services were outstanding at every level. The surgeon even took the time to visit me every day during my stay to follow up on my progress. The physiotherapist showed up even on weekends to work with me and the other foreign patients.

Surgery such as the one I got is a major undertaking, and an even more daunting one when travelling far from home away from family and friends. I took the risk to go for it, and it was worthwhile!

In general, people who know me would confirm that I am a very demanding customer. So it is quite a leap for me to totally recommend without hesitation Wellness Travels to anyone in need of orthopaedic surgery.

Visited Kaunas Wellness Clinic in Lithuania on 18/04/23 for Breast reduction and blepharoplasty of upper eyelids. Was collected from apartment at 9.30 am on 19th. Had blood tests, ecg at clinic and had as taken for consultation with the Dr I had chosen for my surgery. He listened, advised, talked to me about the operations. Took pictures and marked the area being operated on.

I felt very comfortable and in control at all times. The clinic was immaculate and from being collected from the Airport, having bloods, ecg, consultation, to meeting an anaesthetist everything was fully explained and everyone was professional and informative and made sure I was comfortable and calm.

The rooms were very clean and had remote controlled beds, T.V and air conditioning. The en-suite was clean and had the basics for showering, tooth brushing and toileting. A call bell was given to me for anything I needed. I was given a gown, slippers and a robe and taken to the theatre ( a short walk) I was reassured and spoken to by the anaesthetist on arrival and a cannula was popped in my arm.

I only remember waking up back at in my room, being offered a sip of water and having my blood pressure done every 30 minutes/ or hour automatically. I was given an injection to my stomach to avoid thrombosis and was kept comfortable with meds. At no time was I in any Pain. I was offered more pain killers food and drink every time the nurse came in. I was made comfortable and checked on regularly. I felt ok to use the bathroom and used my phone and watched tv between dozing in and out of sleep. I had a cup of tea as often as I asked and was continually offered food.
I slept well thanks to a small sleeping tablet.

I was given a lovely breakfast and saw the dr at 9am ish who checked me over and discharged me. At 9.30 am I was taken back to my apartment, with discharge medication, full instructions and dressing change items. The following Day (Thursday) I went for a walk around the Acropolis centre. I had a shower of my body and washed my hair on my return and slept well with the medication provided managing any discomfort. I used their version of Uber (BOT) for taxi and food delivery and it was very reasonable, easy to download and came really quickly.

I was more than ready for my flight home Saturday early hours. I was collected at 4.15 am and taken to the airport. Arriving home in Cardiff at 8 am.

It’s Sunday and my eyes have caused me no discomfort what so ever. I changed my dressings on my breasts and had a lush shower and washed my hair. I had a little bit of bleeding so used the spray I was given and gauze and reapplied my garment. All is well and I have the discomfort under control. I cannot recommend Dr Karolis Cernauskis enough he is experienced and has written many papers on his expertise in his field.

I hope to return to the clinic in 6 months for a thigh lift and lipo in the meantime I will be dieting and recovering to ensure a good result. I had previously had surgery in London and Cardiff, this was obviously closer to home and nearly double the price it was in Lithuania. I also had several bad experiences with my treatment in Cardiff, I found their technique to be antiquated and the group not as thorough or experienced.

I am happy to share and answer any questions you may have as a thank you to Wellness Clinic Lithuania for their care. I am not on social media so DM me for any queries.