Couples do many activities together. For an Oklahoma couple, one of those was his and hers knee surgeries.
Curt and Linda Meth live in Guthrie, Okla. The couple retired there after decades of raising animals, grain and seven children near Carrington, N.D. Today, they have 14 great-grandchildren in Oklahoma and Texas. They travel to see them, spending months on the road in their RV, stopping at cowboy gatherings like rodeos, poetry readings and storytelling. When they are at home, they enjoy the outdoors, especially horseback riding.
Curt needed knee replacement surgery a few years ago, after a career of climbing in and out of tractors and semis as well as caring for horses, goats and donkeys. He couldn’t get around like he was used to and the couple wanted to maintain their active lifestyle.
“We just have a problem staying home,” Linda joked.
He knew it was time for a surgical intervention when he stopped at the North Dakota Winter Show in Valley City. After a day on his feet, he could barely walk through the parking lot to his pickup – it hurt so bad he needed multiple stops.
“That scared me,” he said. “I didn’t know if I’d get out of there.”
Though he was in pain, he wasn’t ready to slow down.
“There’s lots of things we want to do and we want to do them while we can,” Linda said.
DR. DEAN IS THE WAY TO-GO
When Linda needed knee replacement surgery, “Curt would have it no other way. He said ‘we’re going to Dr. Dean.”
Orthopedic Surgeon Dr. Michael T. Dean joined Jamestown Regional Medical Center in 2011. He is a Mayo-trained surgeon and has replaced more than 5,000 joints in his 20-year career.
“I would recommend JRMC to anyone needing orthopedic surgery, because of Dr. Dean,” Linda said. “There’s a difference between care of up here and care in other parts of the country. People don’t realize what they have here.”
Linda said she was especially impressed with her recovery. Within four weeks of surgery, she was dancing with her physical therapist, Casey Murphy of Summit Physical Therapy and Sports Performance in Carrington.
“I said to Casey, ‘I hear you’re a good dancer. When I graduate from this, we’re going to dance.’ And we did,” she said. “To think I could dance after such a little amount of time was pretty incredible.”
Their daughter, Jamie Heinley agrees. Heinley is a social worker at JRMC.
LEGENDARY CARE
JRMC is a destination for care, Heinley said, a not just because it is her employer. JRMC is a Top 20 Critical Access Hospital out of 1,300 in the country and a Top 100 Best Place to Work. In addition, people from other cities and even states choose to receive their care in Jamestown.
“My parents could go anywhere in the country for their care,” she said. “They’re in the RV all the time and I have siblings across the U.S. However, they choose JRMC because the quality and outcomes exceed their expectations. Dr. Dean and his team are legendary.”
Though he’s older today than he was when his knees were replaced, Heinley says her dad looks better than ever.
“You looked a little rough before that surgery,” she said. “That pain impacts your personality, sleep, everything. Today, you look younger than you did a few years ago.”
Linda said she’s starting to feel the same way.
“When you’re in pain like this, you miss out on life’s opportunities,” she said. “I want to take my great-grandchildren on trips in our RV. I want to travel. That’s what life is about. We would miss that if we didn’t have this level of care.”
Today, Curt continues to recommend Dr. Dean to all his friends in the Carrington and Fessenden areas.
“I’m a walking billboard for Dr. Dean,” he said, smiling.
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