Hernia surgery at Spire Hartswood Hospital

Spire Hartswood Hospital is a well-established provider of private hospital treatments. Patients come to us from Brentwood, Billericay, Chelmsford, Basildon, Romford, other parts of Essex and South East England.

We have a team of expert consultants who have wide experience in performing hernia repair surgery. With a consultant of your choice, you can expect fast access to diagnostic tests and scans, consultations and treatment.

Getting here

At Spire Hartswood Hospital, we’re very easy to reach from the A12, A13, M25 and M11, based just 25 miles from London Stansted Airport and 20 miles from central London. We have free on-site parking for you and your visitors.

Your consultation

You’ll meet your chosen consultant in one of our private consultation rooms. They’ll discuss:

• Your symptoms and medical history
• How inguinal hernia surgery works
• The specific procedure they recommend for your needs
• The type of anaesthetic you’ll require – either a general anaesthetic (where you’ll be asleep) or a local or spinal anaesthetic (where you’ll be awake but unable to feel anything in the area being operated on)
• The potential benefits and risks of the procedure

Your consultant may need you to have additional tests or scans before they can recommend the next steps. Sometimes, particularly if you need a general anaesthetic, you may need to have a pre-operative assessment to check your fitness and overall health before the procedure.

Your visit

You can usually leave hospital on the same day as your surgery. You may need to stay overnight if you have other medical conditions or live alone. If so, you’ll have one of our en-suite private rooms, which will have:

• A wall-mounted TV
• WiFi access
• An en-suite bathroom
• Comfortable chairs for your visitors

If you’re able to go home on the same day, you can relax in a private room until you’re ready to go home – usually for about four hours after surgery.

The operation

During the operation, you’ll have either:

• A general anaesthetic, meaning you’ll be asleep – usually required for keyhole (laparoscopic) procedures
• A spinal or local anaesthetic, meaning you’ll be awake but unable to feel anything in the region being operated on – this is usually used for open hernia repair surgery

Hernia repair surgery normally takes less than one hour.

After surgery

It’s normal to feel some pain or discomfort after hernia surgery, so to make your recovery easier, our nurses will give you medication to help you manage pain.

Going home

Your consultant will be able to advise you on your expected recovery time, based on the surgery you had and your overall health. For most people, you should be back to your usual activities in around six weeks. You’ll return for a check-up appointment with your consultant around two weeks after your operation.

Although everyone’s different and your consultant will be able to give you advice specific to you, here’s a typical recovery timeline: