Mastectomy is an outpatient procedure???

I know of one woman who had an outpatient mastectomy and went home the same day. Her surgery was very early in the morning and they released her that evening. Some insurances don't pay unless something goes wrong. I think it's inhumane personally, but the lady that I know was comfortable at home.

I had a bilateral and stayed in 2 nights

two nights originally scheduled for me. Same day? Ive never heard if that. Glad that wasn't me, as I started heavily bleeding during the night in left breast (drains keep filling fast) they had to go back in the next morning to find the source of bleeding and fix that. I would not want to go home the same day- unimaginable actually.

I'm sorry that is you course:( Is it too late to make a fuss?? One thing I've learned since DX in June is TRUST your gut, if it doesn't feel right, it probably isn't.

I had a BMX and stayed one night, one miserable night with machines malfunctioning and beeping constantly right next to my ear while I waited too long for someone to come turn them off. At night it was the machine the IV goes through...they changed it 3 times before changing the actual IV bag and tubing, which fixed the problem, then in the morning it was the things that went around my calves and squeezed them off and on to keep the blood clots away. Same thing...would stop working, beep incessantly, they'd come fix it, then it would happen all over again. I was super happy to go home! Best wishes for an uneventful and successful surgery with a speedy recovery!! Take care!

I had single mast. no recon.  In and out same day.  My sister (bless her heart) stayed overnight with me and DH.  She was great moral and physical support.

Mine was also outpatient. 

I had bilateral with no reconstruction and stayed two nights, and it was considered outpatient because I was not considered fully admitted to the hospital--I think the explanation was that my insurance would cover up to 48 hours of "observation" after surgery (if I remember correctly).

I did stay overnight just barely, but that was because my surgery wasn't until 3pm & they wouldn't send me home until the ferry was running the next day. But I wasn't admitted to the hospital & DH came to get me at 7am. I was happy to be home in my own bed with my own germs & the peace & quiet. Good luck! GG

my 75 year old mother had umx as an out patient. I was shocked. I stay with her for 2 days. She did pretty good.

My BMX, SNB and reconstruction was considered outpatient. My surgery was late in the day, 2:00pm so I did get to stay the night...but they did usher me out as soon as I ate breakfast. I was home by 8:00a.m. I was actually more comfy at home.

I stayed two nights. Two nights of my back protesting the horrible hospital mattress and me wanting to sit upright in a chair because the bed hurt my back so bad. 5 years ago I had a tummy tuck (28 inch incision from hip to hip, drains, etc.) as an outpatient procedure. It was not easy, but I felt prepared to be at home after my BMX

HOWEVER…my pain was NOT well managed until day two when I came home.

Six weeks later I had to go back in to have my TE's replaced (ruptured one, scar tissue removal on the second which meant automatic replacement on that side too) and was home four hours after my surgery started. I BEGGED to go to the hospital because we couldn't get my pain under control until very late that night.

Remember this, claim you are at a "10" for pain level so they will keep you!

hi Luckydog42, I had a BMX no recon and ended up staying two nights.  The hospital clerk was great.  She knew how to work the system and prepared forms for same-day surgery, my insurance company's standard, and for being admitted if medically necessary (the magic words).  I hope it goes well for you Mon!  ♥  

This really surprises me to hear that you are discharged so quickly. I had my mastectomy after my chemotherapy and I stayed in hospital for a week. I probably didn't need to stay that long but I had drains in and they had to stay in place for a week anyway. It was easier for it to be managed with me staying there and as I had only just finished chemo and had a bit of a low white blood count, they wanted to keep an eye on me. This was all on the NHS in the UK by the way. I had my own room. The quality of care was fantastic and I was never in any pain as it was so well managed.

My reconstructive surgery was a bit different as it was a nearly 10 hour operation. I was in high dependency to begin with and also stayed in for a week. When I was discharged both times, I was well and ready to go home. I would not have been well enough on either occasion to have attempted to go home but especially after the reconstruction.

In the US, the trend is toward shorter hospital stays. I doubt anyone with a recent bmx in the US has ever stayed for a week, unless there were complications. My hospital has only private rooms and the staff was fantastic. The food, while not gourmet, was fresh, tasty and there was a wide selection. However...it was still a hospital. There were signs all over asking that visitors preserve a quiet healing environment, but staff are always moving about helping patients, delivering meds, services etc. Even with my door closed, I was always aware that a hospital never sleeps. I was supposed to stay two nights but stayed three due to pain control issues. If not for that, I would have happily gone home to my own bed as soon as possible.

I stayed overnight after my first mx. I'm sure I needed that time. My second mx a year later I also stayed overnight, but could have gone home. My RN spent a lot of the night in my room just chatting with me. There were 2 screamers down the hall and absolutely no sleep was to happen.

HOWEVER, Medicare didn't want to pay for either stay. MC and hospital are in major arguments at the moment. It's become a bit ugly. I'm in the middle of a major class action lawsuit. I've been told I won't be responsible for the overnight charges, but the hospital is still sending me nasty letters.

My take on all this is that it has become a Medicare policy that MX is day surgery.