Grandfather of four cycles 4,000 miles following hip replacement

Company news

Oct 01, 2014

A ‘life-changing’ hip replacement has enabled 64-year-old Paul Lye from Chippenham to take up a new hobby as an endurance cyclist.

As a lover of sport, in recent years the pain in his hip meant he’d had to stick to the golf course. Now, for the first time, Paul has completed a 300-mile ride across the channel from London to Paris in just four days.

Paul said the marathon cycling event wouldn’t have been possible without undergoing his hip replacement operation at Emersons Green NHS Treatment Centre in Bristol, which is run by independent provider Care UK.

The retired civil engineer cites his quality of care and recovery at Emersons Green NHS Treatment Centre for giving him the confidence to join his son in completing the ride to Paris.

Paul said: “It’s a big change for me. I’ve suddenly found a sport I love that I’ve never really done before. I’ve cycled 4,000 miles in the last 12 months.”

A proud grandfather of four, Paul was treated in November 2011 after suffering hip problems for more than a decade. Just 12 months later, after being encouraged by his son James, Paul asked his doctor if he would be able to start training for the long-distance ride, and his hip was given the go-ahead.

Paul booked in the ride with keen cyclist James but had to start from square one when training for it. He said: “I started off doing a couple of miles a day and gradually built it up. I bought a road bike and thought ‘Oh I like this,’ and found that I could cycle, and I’ve now been cycling for the best part of 12 months.”

Paul said before the operation, his condition had got to the point where he was finding it difficult to go on the golf course and the pain was also keeping him awake at night. Speaking of the discomfort he was in, Paul said: “The only way I could get on a bike was to put it on the floor and pop my leg up and I couldn’t last long cycling until my hips would start going, so I didn’t bother.”

After being impressed by a previous stay at Care UK’s Devizes NHS Treatment Centre, Paul said he had no concerns when it came to choosing a hip operation at Emersons Green. He explained: “I’d had a hernia about twelve months earlier and I used the day clinic that was in Devizes. I’d not heard of Emersons Green NHS Treatment Centre but as soon as my GP told me it was part of the same group, I thought I’d go with that.

“If anyone is considering having surgery, I’d recommend they go to Emersons Green NHS Treatment Centre or somewhere similar because the advantages are phenomenal. A big plus was that it had free parking so people could get in to see me and the food was also great.”

What makes Paul’s cycling achievement even more impressive is that according to scans at the hospital, his other hip may also be damaged. Although Paul said he didn’t feel any pain from either hip while completing the London to Paris ride.

Paul explained: “Strangely enough, I only had one hip replaced but if you look at the X-ray the other one’s the same. But it doesn’t give me any problems at the moment. If I have to have the other one done, then Emersons Green NHS Treatment Centre would be my first choice without a doubt.”

Emersons Green NHS Treatment Centre offers short waiting times and excellent clinical outcomes. The centre only treats NHS patients, therefore patients don’t need to pay for surgery. In order for patients to access treatment they need to be referred to the centre by their GP.