Surgical Evaluations

A surgical evaluation at POSM is a comprehensive consultation with one of our orthopaedic surgeons. The primary objective is to thoroughly assess your condition, determine if surgical intervention is appropriate, and discuss your treatment options. If surgery is not indicated, your surgeon will outline a customized non-surgical management plan and direct your care accordingly. These consultations are typically scheduled following a referral from your primary care provider, an external physician, or one of our non-surgical musculoskeletal specialists.

Your consultation location is typically at our main office or a designated hospital site including:

Lions Gate Hospital Cast Clinic
Whistler Health Care Centre Fracture Clinic
Sechelt Hospital Visiting Specialist Clinic

Eligible patients will be automatically scheduled for consultation at the Lions Gate Hospital North Shore ASAP clinic.

North Shore ASAP Clinic

The North Shore Arthritis Surgical Assessment Program (ASAP) is a collaborative initiative between Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) and POSM designed to improve access, efficiency, and quality of care for patients with hip and knee arthritis requiring surgical consideration.

Functioning as a centralized intake and triage model, the program streamlines referrals from primary care providers into a coordinated pathway where patients are assessed, prioritized based on clinical need, and directed to the most appropriate orthopaedic specialist or non-surgical management when indicated. Advanced practice physiotherapists typically play a key role in initial assessments, optimizing patients for surgery and ensuring appropriate investigations are completed before surgical consultation, thereby reducing unnecessary surgeon visits and wait times.

By integrating standardized protocols, multidisciplinary collaboration, and shared resources between VCH and POSM, the program enhances patient flow, supports equitable access to care, and helps ensure timely, patient-centered decision-making for individuals with hip and knee arthritis on the North Shore.