Hoag Orthopedic Institute Keeps One Mouseketeer Dancing
“Everyone at HOI prepared and helped reassure me before surgery”
Sherry Alberoni Van Meter had put off knee surgery for 15 years, fearing
that potential complications from the surgery would be worse than the
pain she was already suffering. But the day the 68-year-old Mouseketeer
told her grandchildren that she was in too much pain to take them to Disneyland
was the day she knew she had put off surgery long enough.
Van Meter – who goes by the stage name Sherry Alberoni – has
been singing and dancing for Disney for 60 years, since the age of 8.
One of the original Mouseketeers, Van Meter still dances for Disney Cruise Line
®
– though she says she had been “swaying” more than dancing as her
knee pain
grew worse. She was booked to perform in several appearances for Disneyland’s 60
th
anniversary over the summer, and she planned to honor her commitments
because, as the adage goes, “The show must go on.”
But the pain was becoming unbearable. Van Meter found herself “dragging”
her right leg behind her. “When I turned down the opportunity to
spend time with my grandkids, I realized ‘This is ridiculous.’”
Earlier this year, Sherry had a
total knee replacement surgery
on her right knee at
Hoag Orthopedic Institute's (HOI) hospital in Irvine. Her husband, Hoag physician L. Richard Van Meter, M.D., F.C.C.P., recommended
her orthopedic surgeon to her and put her mind at ease.
“Everyone at HOI prepared and helped reassure me before surgery,” she said.
After a two-day stay at HOI and nine days of rehabilitation, Van Meter
was climbing up and down stairs, playing on the floor with her grandkids
and, yes, dancing again.
She’s even doing her shuffle-ball-changes in high heels, a particularly
delicious victory as she has spent “a small fortune” on shoes
that she hadn’t been able to wear in years.
“My goals were to be able to get on the ground and play with my
grandchildren and to dance again. I owe it all to the team at HOI and
the excellent care I received,” Van Meter said.
The Ladera Ranch grandmother said she was particularly impressed with
the medical staff’s diligence, their careful attention to infection
control and their commitment to patients.
“They were above and beyond kind and so professional,” Van
Meter said. “I wouldn’t be in the condition I am today if
it weren’t for the care they gave me.”