Canadian Couple Chooses Eisenhower

DARYL AND SUSAN COLLIER HAVE A LONG HISTORY with the Coachella Valley, dating back more than 30 years when Daryl’s parents purchased a home close to Eisenhower Health. As his parents aged, they came to rely on Eisenhower, so the Colliers were quite familiar with the medical center.

In 2015, suffering with hip pain, Daryl, then 72, researched his best options for hip replacement surgery and Eisenhower Desert Orthopedic Center (EDOC) rose to the top of his list. Within three weeks of his initial phone call, Daryl had his hip replaced, and five weeks later he was back at the gym and in his office. “I was a very happy camper,” says Daryl. “I go to the gym five or six days a week and cycle.”

Susan was having her own health issues with great discomfort and pain in her knees. “I had been suffering with sore knees for a very long time, probably 10 years, and I had many coping mechanisms and managed it fairly well,” says Susan. “But you don’t realize how much you go downhill, physically, slowly. When someone asked me to go on a walk, I’d have to ask them where we would be walking and how far. Sometimes it just wasn’t worth the recovery my knees would have to go through.”

Based on Daryl’s hip replacement success, Susan contacted EDOC who connected her with Board Certified Orthopedic Surgeon Eric Schnaser, MD.

“In the fall of 2017, I first met with Dr. Schnaser’s Physicians Assistant, Kevin Hearn, who listened to all 25 of my questions and answered each one,” says Susan. “Kevin was so thorough. In Canada, I work in the area of pre- and post-op for people who have had knee and hip replacements, so I had a lot of questions. I’m a personal trainer in rehabilitation and I know my subject.

“I went to Eisenhower the following February and met Dr. Schnaser and had my surgery,” continues Susan. “I may have a good level of knowledge about this subject, but I’m a very anxious patient, and Dr. Schnaser put my mind at ease. I had a total replacement of my left knee.

“In Canada, it took a full year for me to hear back about my knee and I was put on a waiting list for another year. At Eisenhower, I had my second knee done in October of that same year.”

“I can’t say enough about Eisenhower and the staff,” explains Susan. “It was an absolute pleasure to be a patient. We had a couple of times when we had to go back in to get things checked and I never felt rushed or that I was taking too much of Dr. Schnaser’s time. I can’t say enough good things about him and his PA, Kevin Hearn.”

“We’ve had three surgeries between the two of us and we’re ecstatically happy,” says Daryl. “We would recommend Eisenhower to anyone.”