PATIENTS undergoing planned hip replacement surgeries will now be sent back home on the same day.

The innovative new way of working at Oxford University Hospitals (OUH) means that the overall length of stay for people at the Oxford-based Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre (NOC), run by OUH, will go down massively from around four days to just one day.

With the first day case hip replacement taking place in July, as of Tuesday, more than 30 patients have received the surgery, recovered, and been discharged all in the same day.

A hip replacement is usually carried out when the joint is worn and pain restricts mobility.

ALSO READ: Community centre revamp 'will go ahead'

Some of the benefits include reduced pain and improved flexibility.

But patients need to be relatively fit for day case surgery and not everyone having a hip replacement is suitable for this type of treatment.

The first patient to go home on the same day was Anne-Marie Hefferan.

The 52-year-old from Stanford in the Vale had her right hip replaced in January with a four-day hospital stay.

However, when she had her left hip replaced in July as part of the new service, she was in hospital for just a day, from 7am to 8.30pm.

Ms Hefferan commented: "The day care service was excellent from start to finish.

"The benefit of this surgery is that you are back home the same day so you get better sleep and feel more relaxed in your home environment.

"All these factors are so important for recovery."