"Orthopedic care is an integral part of today’s healthcare, and we are pleased to have Dr. Fejfar join our medical staff," said Coffey Health System Chief Executive Officer Dennis George. "This is a very important service for our patients. We have been without an orthopedist for the past year, and we understand the tremendous need for orthopedic care in this area. Dr. Fejfar also has family ties in Burlington, and we are always excited to bring new families into the community."

Dr. Fejfar (pronounced "fa-fer") joined the Coffey Health System staff of full-time physicians on March 9. He comes to Burlington from the Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Center in Manhattan, Kansas, and brings a wealth of experience including a medical degree from the University of South Dakota; a transitional residency at the University of South Dakota, Sioux Falls; and an orthopedic residency at the University of Kansas School of Medicine, Wichita. He has completed two fellowships in total joint arthroplasty at the Kansas Joint Replacement Institute in Wichita and young adult hip and adult reconstruction in St. Louis, Missouri. Dr. Fejfar is board certified by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery.

Since the departure of Dr. Larry Cordell in 2008, Coffey Health System patients have been forced to go to Emporia, Topeka, or Kansas City for orthopedic care. Chief of Staff John Shell, M.D./F.A.A.F.P. looks forward to developing orthopedic services that are more convenient and timely for patients.

"We have proven that an orthopedist can be busy and very helpful to our community," Shell said. "Our hospital is well equipped and trained to provide the services that an orthopedist will prescribe and perform. Dr. Fejfar’s presence allows us to expedite patient care and makes receiving care more convenient for our patients."

Coffey Health System offers continuity of care from the primary care physician and radiology, to Dr. Fejfar and the surgery team, to hospital care and physical therapy—even home health care when needed—an approach that creates a personal connection between the patient and healthcare professionals.

"We go through the entire process with the patient. We have surgery and rehabilitation here at the hospital, we have swing-bed, home health, and out-patient services. With that continuity of care, you’re not going from one physical therapist to another facility where you have to re-explain your story," Physical Therapist Heather Taylor explains. "We know you. We’ve worked with you in the hospital. We’ve seen you at your worst and then—on your last day of rehab—we will celebrate with you at your best."

Rehabilitation doesn’t mean expensive equipment or daily trips to the gym. Coffey County Hospital’s physical therapists carefully structure treatment plans that can be carried out with typical household items.

"We try to make sure that everything we do here, our patients can also do at home," explains Physical Therapist Heather Taylor. "For a knee-strengthening exercise, we will sometimes put a coffee can under the patient’s knee. For shoulder surgery, we will use a cane or yardstick to help with their range-of-motion. If a patient needs resistance exercises, we’ll use a thera-band that we provide to them at no cost so they can do their strengthening at home."

Taylor points out that successful rehabilitation starts long before surgery, with strength-building and realistic expectations of recovery times, which vary significantly.