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Your surgery, from beginning to end

Welcome to Montfort. We are pleased to accompany you throughout your surgery, from beginning to end, whether it is for a day surgery or a hospital stay.

Each year, over 9,000 people like you have surgery at Montfort, Ontario’s Francophone academic hospital.

Your pre-admission appointment

When your surgeon determines that you will have surgery at Montfort, a pre-admission appointment is scheduled for you. During this appointment, you will meet a nurse who will ask you questions to assess your health condition and prepare your medical file. Other tests or treatments may be done, and other specialists may meet with you.

For your appointment, you will need:

  • Your Health Card
  • An up-to-date list of your medications

Pre-admission appointments take place via telehealth, by telephone or in person. 

Helpful links

Before your surgery

  • Read the information document that applies to your upcoming surgery. Some of these documents are available under the "After" tab on this page.
  • Notify your surgeon as soon as possible if you need to cancel or postpone your surgery.
  • Contact your surgeon to report any fever, sore throat, colds or flu.
  • You will not be able to drive a vehicle when you leave the hospital after your surgery. Plan a mode of transportation for your return home.
  • You will need to be escorted home and someone should keep you company for 24 hours after your surgery.
  • If you will need mobility equipment (walker, crutches, sling, brace, specialized shoe, etc.) after your surgery, get them before the day of your surgery. 
  • Purchase the SCRUB STAT 2% antiseptic body cleanser at the Montfort gift shop, or at the Ontario Medical Supply (OMS) store at the Aline-Chrétien Health Hub in Orléans. To know the stores opening hours, click on their names.

**Important message for GLP1 receptor agonist medication: If you are taking Semaglutide (Ozempic, Rybelsus), Dulaglutide (Trulicity) or Tirzepatide (Mounjaro), you must stop taking the medication at least 3 weeks before your surgery to reduce your risk of complications. If you use this medication to control your diabetes, contact your family physician or endocrinologist if your blood sugar levels rise significantly after stopping the medication.

The day before your surgery

  • A reception clerk will call you the business day before your surgery, between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m., to inform you of the time you must arrive on the day of your surgery.
  • You must fast from 11 p.m. onward. Do not eat any solid food.
  • You may drink water or apple juice only, up to 2 hours before your surgery, for a maximum of 1 cup (250 ml).
  • Do not smoke or drink alcohol.
  • Take a shower or a bath with the antiseptic body cleanser. Follow the skin disinfection instructions included in your pre-admission kit.

The morning of your surgery, at home

If you think you may be late the morning of your surgery, notify the hospital at 613-748-4946. Stay on the line until you talk to a clerk.

  • Follow the skin disinfection instructions included in your pre-admission kit.
  • Do not wear any:
    • jewelry, body piercing,
    • make-up, nail polish (hands and feet),
    • deodorant, perfume, hairspray,
    • contact lenses.
  • Take your usual medications with water, unless your surgeon tells you otherwise.
    • If you are diabetic, do not take your diabetes medication.
    • If you take inhalers (pumps), take them according to your prescription and take them with you to the hospital.
  • Prepare a large reusable bag (such as a duffel bag) labeled with your name, in which you will put your personal belongings, including:
    • Your dentures, glasses, hearing aids and/or sleep apnea machine (CPAP) in their containers, if you wear them.
    • A reusable water bottle and a snack for after your surgery.
    • Your clothes and shoes.
  • Do not bring any valuables or money. You will only need your health card.

To reduce medical waste, Montfort does not provide plastic bags or Styrofoam cups in the Operating Room. Please be sure to bring the items listed above.

The morning of your surgery, at the hospital

Present yourself at the Operating Room reception at room  2A105 at the scheduled time.

Having surgery can be stressful. This is why we are offering you a little tour of the hospital before the day of your surgery. This video will enable you to familiarize yourself with the steps in a surgery much like the one you will be having and to see how everything is going to happen.

This video has been made available for informational and educational purposes only. It is not necessarily a representation of all the best practices in place at Montfort.

Upon your arrival, a clerk receives you and provides you, and the person accompanying you, with an information document that lays out all of the steps for the day. The clerk asks you for your health card, gives you a stretcher number, and asks you to go to the waiting room.

A follow-up screen allows you to see in real time all of the various steps involved in your surgery. It indicates your surgeon’s name as well as the stages of your surgery. No information is displayed that could enable others to identify you.

We recommend that you leave any valuable items, such as your cell phone and wallet, at home. All you need is your health card.

If you have valuable items with you, please give them to the person accompanying you, in the waiting room.

Before your surgery

When we are ready to receive you, your nurse comes to get you in the waiting room and takes you to the day surgery unit. If you need assistance walking, the nurse brings you a wheelchair.

For day surgery, you are asked to put on a hospital gown. You can leave your clothes in a locker.

After you have changed, go to the stretcher that was assigned to you.

Your surgeon comes to see you, reviews each of the steps with you and reassures you about the surgery. The surgeon ensures that you still agree to proceed with the surgery.

Your anaesthetist also comes to talk to you about the type of anaesthesia you will be given, reviews each of the steps with you, and reassures you about the anaesthesia procedure and pain management. 

Your nurse comes to prepare you for the surgery, takes your vital signs, gives you your medications, if any, and makes sure that you have everything you need.

At the time of your surgery

A porter comes to take you to the operating room. 

From there, a nurse comes to do a final check before you go into the operating room. You may have to wait a moment outside the room.

In the operating room, several members of the team are present around you. You may see a porter, nurses, your surgeon, your anaesthetist, a respiratory therapist and, sometimes, a resident or medical student, there to observe the surgery.

After your surgery

After your surgery, you are taken to the recovery room, where you rest for at least 30 minutes. When you wake up, you may be attached to a monitor that continuously monitors your vital signs, and allows your nurse to see how you are doing. Your nurse also makes sure that you are comfortable and gives you pain and nausea medication, if you need it.

When you are ready to leave the recovery room, a porter takes you either to day surgery, if the plan is for you to go home the same day, or to your room, if you are going to be staying at the hospital.

When it comes time to go home, plan to have a friend or loved one accompany you.

Your care team is available to answer your questions before, during and after your surgery.

We hope that this overview answers your questions, and reassures you about your upcoming surgery.

We look forward to seeing you at your next appointment.

Clinical information documents

General surgery

Gynaecological surgery

Orthopaedic surgery

Ear, nose and throat (ENT) surgery

Breast Surgery

Urological surgery

Also consult the documents available free of charge on the Canadian Urological Association's website by clicking here. 

Exercise programs

Note on GLP1 receptor agonist medications

If you have stopped taking a GLP1 receptor agonist medication - Semaglutide (Ozempic, Rybelsus), Dulaglutide (Trulicity) or Tirzepatide (Mounjaro) - in preparation for your surgery, you can start again at the lowest dose, increasing weekly until you are back at your usual dose. This is to avoid nausea, vomiting and other gastrointestinal symptoms.

Additional Notes

Patients with an appointment will receive 
an automated reminder by phone, up to
5 days prior to their appointment. 

This service requires a medical referral from your physician.

Coordinates

Pre-admission: Level 1, wing C. Room 1C175

Operating Room: Level 2, wing A. Room 2A105 or 2A140

613-748-4946, if you think you will be late the morning of your surgery

Getting to Montfort