I had a total knee replacement of my left knee in April 2018 and a total knee replacement of my right knee in April 2019. Thanks to Dr. Bjerke and his staff, Katie and Andrea, I can walk and go up and down stairs without pain and I no longer limp at all. I totally recommend Dr. Bjerke and his staff to anyone who has knee pain. They are the greatest!

May 31st, 2018 was a day I felt both my strongest and weakest, physically and mentally. In the span of 12 hours, I passed a firefighter agility test to become a volunteer firefighter and tore my ACL and meniscus playing recreational kickball. Having tore my other ACL eight years prior, I knew right away what that loud “pop” meant in that moment and for the next year. Firefighting would be put on hold and I was in for a year of hard work to make my comeback. The next day I went to TCO’s orthopedic urgent care. Dr. Desiree Kempcke confirmed my diagnosis and referred me to my surgeon, Dr. Brian Bjerke. We discussed my options and I appreciated how he took into account my prior ACL surgery results into my surgery and treatment plan. Although I’m a healthcare professional and this wasn’t my first ACL reconstruction rodeo, Dr. Bjerke never glossed over the details and was so thorough in making sure all my questions were answered. Dr. Bjerke sent me to Tonia Flategraff, DPT, right away to start physical therapy prior to my surgery. It gave me confidence that Dr. Bjerke trusted Tonia to be my physical therapist and get me back to firefighting. The entire process of establishing care with TCO, through surgery and physical therapy, was seamless and shows the teamwork and collegiality within the organization. My surgery went well and then it was time for the real work to begin, physical therapy. Since I had met with Tonia prior to surgery, I knew exactly what to do post-op until our first session. Tonia is full of positivity and motivation, which made me look forward to physical therapy sessions. I know when I’m done with each session together I’m one step closer to my comeback! It is evident Tonia truly enjoys her career with TCO and ACL rehab because she is always ready to go, focusing all of her attention and training on you during a physical therapy session. Tonia is amazing and I’m so happy she is my TCO Champion as I make my comeback to volunteer firefighting!

Dr. Bjerke replaced my left knee in April 2018. The surgery took away my arthritis pain in that knee immediately. After 6 weeks of outpatient therapy at TCO, I was able to walk again better than I had in many years. Dr. Bjerke and his staff (Katie and Andria) took wonderful care of me. I recommend them to anyone!!

I have my right knee replaced April 5, 2017 and my left knee replaced October 17, 2017, both by Dr. Bjerke. The staff all took great care of me. I have had wonderful results. The best thing is that I can walk pain free. This winter I have been ice skating and cross country skiing. Overall a great experience. So very happy to be moving again. The only advice I have for anyone thinking about having this done is: BE PATIENT. It may take 2-3 months before you start feeling that it was worth it! But it is the most wonderful thing ever!

Dr. Bjerke and his staff (Katie, Patrick, Andria) were very caring and professional. In determining that my knee pain was resonating from the hip, they first eliminated a number of potential causes focused on the knee. I was pushing for knee replacement, but their assessment of my knee structure as good led them to examine previous x-rays on the hip that indicated significant arthritis. That assessment led to hip injections that eliminated the pain and no surgery was required, all thanks to their pursuit of the actual cause.

I herniated a disc in my C spine in the fall and experienced terrible pain and numbness down my right arm. I saw Dr. Bjerke, who immediately got MRIs done and recommended rest, then a course of PT. He did an excellent job. I feel completely better and I just completed a 1/2 marathon. I am thankful to TCO for helping me when I was so worried a few months back!

I was very fortunate to be cared for by Dr. Bjerke! He applied emergency stabilization, recommended treatment protocol, performed surgery and provided followup care. We were extremely impressed with the knowledge, expertise, professionalism and caring manner of everyone we worked with – from the urgent care and surgical staff to the physical therapy specialists. Thank you for the excellent care, Dr. Bjerke and staff! It made a very painful situation much easier that I felt I was in good hands.