Since opening in June, the clinic has reduced waiting times for patients requiring knee and hip replacements. 

Physiotherapists have been recruited to help ease demand on orthopaedic surgeons. 

“It (the clinic) reviews post-operation patients after they’ve had a knee or hip replacement. Traditionally that would have been done by our orthopaedic surgeon,” physiotherapy department manager Fiona Conochie said. 

“Instead of an orthopaedic surgeon doing the reviews, a highly trained physiotherapist does the reviews ... they’ve found it’s very safe and very effective for them to do that. 

“It obviously frees up time for our orthopaedic surgeon.”

The clinic — called a Post Athroplasty Review Clinic (PAR)  — could also help recruit and retain future specialists at South West Healthcare. 

“Sometimes clinics can be choked up with things that need to be reviewed,” orthopaedic surgeon Alasdair Sutherland said. 

Musculoskeletal physiotherapist Tony Pritchard said 90 per cent of reviews were routine and could be carried out by someone else other than the surgeon.

There are four orthopaedic surgeons overall at SWH with another one to join the hospital in 2016. 

Mr Sutherland is the only surgeon in the new clinic but said it would reduce his waiting list, which can be months long, allowing him to see five new patients a week. 

“The waiting time to get into my clinic is running between four or five months at the moment,” Mr Sutherland said. 

A year after a hip replacement, Warrnambool truck detailer Gary Batten became the 77th patient through the clinic.

Initially thought to have knee problems, Mr Batten was diagnosed with arthritis and was barely able to walk.

“I could hardly walk for seven years,” he said. 

Since the operation he’s been back at work. 

“I’ve been at the gym on the bike and I’ve lost 10 kilos.”