Elsa Gould's Story


The cold never bothered her anyway…but the hip pain did. Elsa Gould decided she had enough of the agony associated with her arthritic right hip. It was time to “Let it Go.”

“It hurt even to lie down sleep,” she said.

So, the 73-year old Weymouth resident researched some of the top orthopedic physicians in the area. After careful investigation, she chose Dr. Michael Ayers from South Shore Orthopedics to perform her hip replacement surgery. “I liked him right away,” she said. “He really listened to me and always made great eye contact.”

The surgery was scheduled at South Shore Hospital on Oct. 27, 2014, a date of special meaning to Elsa because it marked the tenth anniversary of the day the Boston Red Sox finally won the World Series after 86 years. Elsa and her four children are all dedicated Red Sox and Patriots fans.

The surgery went extremely well and as Elsa began her recovery at South Shore Hospital, she noticed that the nurses and other staff were delighted to have a patient with the same name as the Snow Queen and star of Disney’s mammoth hit movie Frozen. “The nurses would knock on my door and say, “Elsa, do you want to build a snowman?” she recalled. “I went 72 years without ever hearing about Elsa. I could never find a kids’ license plate with my name for my bike, a pencil, or anything. No one ever heard of it, and all of a sudden, it’s the most popular name in the world.”

Elsa loved the personal level of care and compassion she received from Dr. Ayers, the nurses and other caregivers at South Shore Hospital. It greatly helped her recovery and rehabilitation process. She feels much better now and has returned to doing activities that were once too painful. She expressed her gratitude by making a gift to the South Shore Health System Foundation to thank and honor her caregivers.

“South Shore Hospital takes great care of everyone,” she said, “even if they don’t have a famous name.”