Patient Testimonials

Randy Wittman, former NBA player and coach, had been experiencing continual knee and hip pain for 20-plus years before he came to Twin Cities Orthopedics’ Brian O’Neill. Dr. O’Neill performed hip surgery for Randy, and then a knee replacement 6 weeks later.

With help from TCO’s EXCEL Program and Dr. O’Neill, Randy was able to return to his regular lifestyle, traveling, playing golf, and walking without pain. “I’ve gone through a lot of surgeries—back, three knee replacement operations—and the EXCEL Program was the best. It wasn’t like being in a hospital. I went from the surgery to a private suite, and was connected to a nurse for the whole process of both my hip and knee—that nurse is like a sister to me now,” says Wittman. “And for insurance and billing, you get one bill. That’s it, at the end of the process. It made everything so much easier for me to use the EXCEL Program.”

*Randy Wittman’s story was featured in the September ’16 Issue of MPLS St. Paul Magazine. See more here

I just wanted to make sure that I fully expressed my appreciation for all of the people at Twin Cities Orthopedics. They ALL went above and beyond my expectations in order to help me with my unique and untimely injury. And ALL truly means each and every one. From the very first interaction it was as if I had gone to another level of patient care that I had never experienced before.

When I came by to drop off the imaging CD from my ER visit, the very personable and exceptionally nice woman at reception took extra time to upload the CD so that I could keep the disk for backup. She also took the time to hand carry it to the imaging department as her computer terminal was not confirming the upload. Lisa Long went the extra mile to fit me into Dr. Coetzee’s schedule so that he could perform the surgery before he went out of town. And then she went another extra mile to fit me in on a reschedule when insurance referral issues delayed the first surgery opportunity. Mary Wolf and Kristine Odegard both put in a herculean effort to get my insurance’s referral approved in two days, when it usually takes the system ten to fourteen. Larry Nilsson, Dr. Coetzee’s Physician Assistant with Jackie Fritz took out the stitches and advised me with care. And every interaction was personable, kind and not hurried or dismissive in any way. Each of these feats alone puts Twin Cities Orthopedics in the incredible category, but for them to all happen in coordination to attend to a patient’s urgent need is a health care synergy that is head and shoulders above any other medical interaction I have had in my 57 years – and my penchant for extreme sports has given me many interactions from which to claim my assessment to be authoritative. And of course, the personable and positive attitude of one of the very small handful of the very best foot and ankle doctors in the world – Dr. Coetzee – gave comfort and confidence that the best possible outcome for this unfortunate injury is in the cards. There just could not have been a better clinic to go to as Twin Cities Orthopedics and Dr. Coetzee are simply in a stand-alone, superlative category of patient care.

I met Dr. Eggert after I broke both bones in my lower right leg while going to get the mail and slipping on ice.  He performed surgery, including putting a titanium rod inside the tibia from the knee to the ankle, along with screws to hold it in place.  The recovery process is close to finished and has gone smoothly, absolutely no complaints.  I am thankful that Dr. Eggert is my doctor.  He is a kind, caring doctor, skilled surgeon, and a very nice person.  I am very pleased with the work he did and would highly recommend him to others in a similar need.

The EXCEL program sounded too good to be true. However, I had a nice comfortable suite, no ugly hospital gown and I felt much more at ease than in a hospital. Instead of feeling exhausted when leaving the hospital after surgery, I felt somewhat rested and closer to “normal.” I even got to drink a coke!

I highly recommend the EXCEL program. The care was great and I felt very comfortable there.

I am an active person and a professional gardener. I was able to work this spring after having surgery at the end of January. I got a lot of support and encouragement from Dr. Mair and Erin. I am even planning a backpacking trip this fall. Last year I was afraid these things would not be possible.

I can honestly say Dr. Norberg gave me my life back.

August 2012: I fell getting into an Xcel Energy elevator. The floor did not settle all the way, I caught my foot and by the time I hit the back side of the elevator I had: 1) broken the tip of my shoulder bone, 2) dislocated my shoulder and 3) broken/ripped two tendons. After 7 hours in the ER, the technicians were finally able to get my shoulder back in it’s socket.

FIRST SURGERY: September/October 2012 – Reconnect tendons followed by months of physical therapy. Daily exercises at home. It was painful and I still developed a frozen shoulder.

SECOND SURGERY: May 2013 – I was referred to Dr. Norberg from my first orthopedic surgeon. He said Dr. Norberg is “the best” for shoulders. Dr. Norberg reattached the tendons and released my frozen shoulder. More physical therapy, more exercises.

THIRD SURGERY: January 2016 – Reverse Shoulder Replacement. By this time, my tendons had pretty much dissolved. We could have tried to use a substitute tendon but my chances of lasting success were slim. My best option was a reverse shoulder replacement.

RESULTS: I am very happy to be able to use my shoulder with no pain. I can do normal home activities, i.e. fix my hair, wash my face, get dishes out of the cabinet, carry groceries. I can lift up to 20 lbs easily. I don’t try to lift anything heavy over my head and that is fine with me.

MY LIFE RENEWED: It is because of Dr. Norberg’s skill, care, concern and personal warmth that I have returned to my old self again. I am so very happy with my results. I would highly recommend Dr. Norberg to anyone needing shoulder help.

Bill H., my husband, had a total left knee done in April of 2015 and then he had his right knee done in January of 2016.  He is back on his bicycle and did his first Tour de Tonka last Saturday.  Bill just recently retired from nursing (he had a 40 year career in pulmonary and critical care/trauma) and I am also a nurse, so we understand how extraordinary his experience was and how well he has progressed. As Bill’s wife, I am just thrilled with the outcome of his surgeries.  Dr. O’Neill and his team gave him back his mobility and enhanced his quality of life.

I can’t express enough the satisfaction I have had with all aspects of my surgery, starting with Dr. Panek and all the adjunct caregivers from the hospital stay to his assistant Will. Dr. Panek’s expertise, intelligence, kindness and reassuring manner was absolute top notch. The surgery went perfectly, the results are such a relief to my well-being. I was able to regain my strength and flexibility within three to six months of the surgery. I went on a month long trip to Europe at the beginning of the sixth month, that he predicted could happen for me without pain or discomfort. I am forever grateful to my friend for recommending him. Thank you Dr. Panek.

I had knee replacement surgery and had only visited Dr. O’Neill once before the surgery. He told me I had a torn meniscus but also a lot of arthritis so I would need a knee replacement. He was very professional, courteous, and kind. He did a great job and the scar is minimal. I highly recommend him.

I had a very successful total left hip replacement in November 2011. The surgeon used the posterior approach procedure.

In May 2016 Dr. O’Neill performed an equally successful total hip replacement on my right side using the anterior approach procedure.

There are significant differences in the recovery process between these two approaches.

In the posterior method I used a walker/cane about 2 1/2 weeks and the discomfort was greater. I was back walking 18 holes of golf in about six weeks.

After the anterior procedure used by Dr. O’Neill, I started walking unaided (no cane) on day 2 after surgery. On day 7, post-surgery, I started putting and chipping at the golf course. On day 12, I was walking 3 miles most days at 90% of full stride. By week 3, I was walking 4-6 miles most days at 100%.

My wife and I are going hiking in the Italian Alps in August 2016.

WOW! What can I say about Dr. Owen O’Neill and his staff? I’m a super active mid 60’s guy who was playing a pretty high level of competitive racquetball 2 to 3 times per week until the last couple of years. My hip pain got to the point where I could not play at all, much less competitively. I was waking up 10 to 20 times per night from pain with obviously significant sleep interruption. Walking from the house to my truck in the driveway was very difficult.

First of all, my hip pain disappeared completely. What a magnificent relief. Secondly Dr. O’Neill and his staff made me feel listened to, empathized with and cared for. I managed to strain my inner thigh muscle 3 days after surgery, so that set my recovery back a bit, but here I am 3 months out and super pleased with the results. My left hip also needs replacement and at my 3 week checkup, in spite of the strained muscle issue, I told Dr. O’Neill that I couldn’t wait to get the left hip done. I’m scheduled for that in October 2016 and I expect to be back at racquetball by January or February 2017. Without hesitation I recommend Dr. O’Neill and his staff. On a scale of 1-10 they get a 15.