Thanksgiving Made Special at OHOW
Thanksgiving is the time of year when we take the opportunity to say thank you for all the positive things in our lives. People gather on this day with family and friends to toast to their health and good fortune. For various reasons, not everyone can spend this day of thanks with their family. Some may even have to take advantage of this extended holiday weekend to have a scheduled medical procedure completed. This is often the case with our patients that have surgery right before or on Thanksgiving at the Orthopaedic Hospital of Wisconsin.
We realize that when you schedule surgery with us over this holiday weekend, you may be missing quality time with your family, lots of football games, and a home-cooked meal. This is why we at OHOW do everything in our power to make your Thanksgiving special. Our head Chef and the rest of our food service team work together to prepare a delicious, traditional Thanksgiving meal for you and one of your closest family members. Don’t worry, we have all of the major football channels too. If you find yourself in need of orthopedic surgery, we are happy to have you join in our hospital Thanksgiving tradition and aim to make you feel like part of our OHOW family.
How the Tradition Began
Chef Mike Wolf joined the OHOW team in 2012 and later that year our Thanksgiving tradition began. Every year since Mike and his team have taken time away from their families to prepare the Thanksgiving meal for our patients. They wake up early to cook everything from scratch, to make our patients feel the comfort of a home-cooked meal during this holiday time.
The preparation itself begins weeks before the holiday. After a patient’s surgery is scheduled over Thanksgiving, they are contacted by one of our cooks. We inform them of our Thanksgiving tradition and ask if they will be having a guest join them for dinner. We check if the patient or their guest have any dietary restrictions that we need to be aware of, so we can accommodate their needs. Details are given about when the meal is served hot and ready to the patient’s room.
Chef Mike says, “Every year people are surprised when we do something special for them. They are normally expecting everyday hospital food.” It’s like having a Thanksgiving meal tailored and cooked just how you want it. We even deliver it — does it get better than that?
A Meal Served Just for You
Every year we have patients express their satisfaction and delight with our delicious Thanksgiving dinner. One patient, Ralph, is coming back for his third surgery at OHOW over Thanksgiving. Although his main motive is to be healed in time to serve as an usher at Christmas mass, he has only great things to say about OHOW’s tradition and service.
Ralph hasn’t been to OHOW since 2013, but he recalled many details about his last Thanksgiving dinner here. He said, “If you aren’t sitting at your home table, this is as close as you’d get to Thanksgiving being what it would be.” Ralph’s wife has dietary restrictions, and he mentioned that we always make sure to accommodate her dietary needs so that they can enjoy the holiday meal together. When asked about the food Ralph said, “The meal is excellent — all of the food at OHOW is excellent.”
He remembers the CEO of the Orthopaedic Hospital of Wisconsin, Mr. Brian Cramer, and his daughter serving him and his wife their warm Thanksgiving meal. He expressed what a nice touch this was and how well run the entire hospital is.
Ralph has nothing but positive things to say about the Orthopaedic Hospital of Wisconsin and his experiences here over the holiday. He said, “The patient is the main focus– they do their best to make your stay as comfortable as possible.” Although no one wishes to be in the hospital over Thanksgiving, he is looking forward to another Thanksgiving meal at OHOW.
Our Thanksgiving Feast
Every dish we serve is home-cooked from scratch and served hot from our kitchen. We like to think that our Thanksgiving meal could stand the test against your favorite family recipes. Our menu consists of all the Thanksgiving staples: roasted turkey, stuffing, french style green beans, mashed potatoes, maple roasted sweet potatoes, cranberry berry sauce, and of course, pumpkin pie! Don’t worry, if you’re not a fan of pie, we have pumpkin cheesecake as well. When you come to OHOW for your Thanksgiving meal, we are sure you will be satisfied with your service and leave with a full stomach.
We do our best to accommodate every patient and their family members’ dietary needs, so we still offer our normal menu. We understand that this is not the ideal way to spend any holiday, so we want to do anything possible to make your day special.
At the Orthopaedic Hospital of Wisconsin, we do things differently. As Ralph said, “Nobody wants to go to the hospital, but if you have to go somewhere, OHOW is the place to be. They go out of their way to make your stay as pleasant as possible.” We do our very best to make you feel the warmth and joy of Thanksgiving because we are thankful for you choosing the Orthopaedic Hospital of Wisconsin.
Happy Thanksgiving from our OHOW family to yours!