Patient Testimonials

I have been seeing Dr. Jeffrey Mair at TCO for my orthopedic concerns for quite a few years based on a friend referral. I made the right choice in having Dr. Mair as my orthopedic surgeon. It was time to have my right knee replaced. Dr. Mair completed the surgery in the spring of 2024 and I have had great results. My surgery was completed at the Two Twelve Surgery Center in Chaska through TCO and I went through their EXCEL Program. The care I received from Dr. Mair, his staff, and everyone in the EXCEL Program was great. My scar is nearly unnoticeable and I’m more than happy with my new knee. I will be having my other knee replaced by Dr. Mair and I will again be going through their EXCEL Program. I have recommended Dr. Mair and TCO to others and will continue to recommend them. I am confident my next surgery will go as great as my first one.

From the first time I met Dr. Bircher and PA Kari I had trust in their expertise, their recommendations, and pre-surgical instructions. In addition, their bedside manner, both before and after surgery was superb, kind, attentive, and informative. This was such pleasant surprise since I’ve had the opposite previously. They told me exactly what I’d be going through post-surgery including a timeline for healing. The communication with Dr. Bircher, Kari, Cassie, and Stephanie was beyond excellent. They returned my calls, emails, and texts either within minutes, within the day, or by the next day. They also responded in the evenings and even on weekends. That surprised me and made me feel important. The physical therapy team of Michelle and Lisa demonstrated their knowledge and well proven techniques. Their bedside manner was also superb. Their patience and encouragement were exactly what I needed. Since the conclusion of my clinical PT I’ve continued to follow the exercise program they laid out for me. I attribute the level of my mobility to them. At this writing, I am three months post-surgery. My knee is doing well, and I am happy with the results. I am looking forward to further healing. I have an appointment with Dr. Bircher/Kari in one week and I’m curious to see what their reaction will be to my progress.  Finally, and it’s obvious by my comments cited above, I completely and totally recommend this fantastic team. In fact, a year from now I’m planning on having my other knee replaced. I have been in their expert hands, and I know I will be in the future.

I continually made excuses on why it wouldn’t make sense to have the knee replacement done until I could retire. My quality of life had gotten worse to the point where I was having trouble with simple day to day activities. My family were constantly asking me to go get my knee fixed. They could tell I was in a lot of pain most of the time. I was struggling to sleep; I had no end in sight. Finally, I decided to go to TCO to have Dr. Bircher look at it. He recommended to have surgery because he felt he could help me have a better quality of life. He suggested the EXCEL Program, he felt it was a good fit for me because of my age 56. He was very honest, and said it wasn’t going to be easy, but if I worked hard and followed the plan, I should have good results. The day of the surgery I was extremely nervous, I started to doubt my decision to do it. Then walked in Dr. Bircher, smile on his face as usual. He went through everything that was going to happen, and what to expect going forward. Then to my surprise he asked if he could pray with me. The nervousness went away, I knew I was in good hands. When I awoke, I felt good. They brought me to my room at the Plymouth Orthopedic Surgery Center. This is where my recovery began, and Dr. Bircher checked on me a few times while I was there. He said if I need anything to let him know. The pain I had post-surgery was nothing compared to what I had been dealing with for years. I worked hard and followed the plan set for me, everyday seemed to get better and better. Now, here I am 4 months after surgery and I got my life back. I wish I would have had surgery years ago; I will never put anything like this off again. A huge Thank You goes out to Dr. Bircher and his incredible team at TCO.

This spring I met with Dr. Bircher to discuss a possible knee replacement. He was patient, knowledgeable, warm and encouraging. The entire team took time to answer questions when they arose, check in on status, and encourage continued recovery. As anyone having knee replacement knows, it is not a fun surgery or recovery process, but the team was amazing. Since a second knee replacement is in my future (the other knee), I am so much more at peace knowing Dr Bircher and his team provide awesome care and support!

I’m an 83-year-old who recently had a total knee replacement performed by Dr. Owen O’Neill. He has provided orthopedic care for me during the past 20 years (he also performed my hip replacement in 2019). I had known that both of my knees were ‘bone-on-bone’ for many years but always hoped I could avoid more surgery and had numerous cortisone injections and physical therapy over the years. Last year, I took a nasty fall which finally pushed me to consider knee replacement, something I concluded was a ‘quality of life’ decision. Knee pain was preventing me from climbing stairs, walking any distance, etc. The final straw came last spring while on vacation in San Diego. I was miserable! I couldn’t walk more than a few feet without significant pain and was inconveniencing others.

TCO from our hotel room in San Diego and set a date for the total knee replacement at the end of May. It was the best decision for me. At 10 weeks with my new knee, I can walk and climb stairs without pain. I believe my decision to finally have this surgery, even at an advanced age, was definitely facilitated by the long history of excellent orthopedic care I have experienced with Dr O’Neill.

A close friend of mine had Dr. Christopher Meyer perform his knee surgery and highly recommended him and TCO to me to do my total knee replacements. What a God-send! I elected to do each knee replacement one year apart. The first knee replacement and rehabilitation went wonderfully well and the second went even better. Everything connected to Dr. Meyer and his team was exceptional. They all were patient-centered, personable, and professional.

In April, Dr. Bircher performed my total knee replacement surgery, and it was the best decision I ever made. He was very professional and worked with me prior to my decision to have surgery and I appreciated his patience and understanding.

An old knee meniscus injury (1977), exacerbated by 28 years of military service and thousands of miles training for marathons finally led me to make an appointment for nagging pain and lack of mobility. Dr. James Bircher recognized immediately after looking at my x-rays the need for a total knee replacement. My surgery was 11 March, and I was able to walk my daughter down the aisle at her 22 June wedding unimpeded by pain. The initial recovery was not fun, but through great physical therapy at TCO and great care by Dr. Bircher’s team, I am able to walk pain-free for the first time in decades. Dr. Bircher and his team tells it like it is — the recovery will be tough the first several weeks, but by 6 months you will be better than before. I am waiting to see what 1 year brings! Thanks Dr. Bircher and team!

Dr. Bircher performed my knee replacement surgery. Once it was determined that I needed to have my knee replaced, Dr. Bircher and his team explained the entire procedure to me and what I could expect after surgery. I was very well pleased with the entire process and would recommend Twin Cities Orthopedics to anyone.

Dr. O’Neill handled both my total knee replacements this past year and I couldn’t be more pleased with the results. From the initial assessment with Dr. O’Neill, I could tell this was a highly experienced surgeon with a very warm and reassuring personality. I could feel he genuinely cared about my well-being. Every interaction since that initial assessment was very positive. The recovery process has been steady and relatively swift. Now that my second knee replacement was 3 months ago, I am beginning to again resume a more active lifestyle which I had put aside years ago, like enjoying playing golf pain-free or taking long walks with my wife. I highly recommend Dr. O’Neill to anyone thinking about total knee replacement surgery. My only regret is that I didn’t see Dr. O’Neill years ago!