It's 7am, I'm dressed in scrubs, and I'm trying to remember how to get out of the maze that is Animas Surgical Hospital. This should be your first clue that I got officially-officially approved to observe surgeries today, and it was fantastic. Besides working 11 hours in a day and standing on my feet for a majority of that, watching Dr. Butzen cut open (and repair) people was so fascinating.
We started the day with no time to show me where to go, so I basically just followed the patient wherever they went. Once in the operating room, here's what I learned: always wear a mask, don't get in the way, DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING BLUE (the blue things are sterile). Pretty basic, but slightly confusing considering I'm dressed in blue scrubs...
We had 5 surgeries today:
-Pin removal in forearm
-Total shoulder replacement
-Rotator cuff tear repair and arthroscope of shoulder
-Darrach procedure in wrist (removing an arthritic bone)
-Pinky hardware removal and possible infection inspection
I also got to hold the humeral head that was removed from the total shoulder replacement and got to be 'cement-watcher,' who tells the surgeons when the cement has hardened. I got to keep the cement, they wouldn't let me keep the humeral head.
Since I'm not allowed to take pictures in the operating room, here's a picture of my surgery last year on my knee. What you're looking at is below my left knee. Caution: Graphic.
We started the day with no time to show me where to go, so I basically just followed the patient wherever they went. Once in the operating room, here's what I learned: always wear a mask, don't get in the way, DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING BLUE (the blue things are sterile). Pretty basic, but slightly confusing considering I'm dressed in blue scrubs...
We had 5 surgeries today:
-Pin removal in forearm
-Total shoulder replacement
-Rotator cuff tear repair and arthroscope of shoulder
-Darrach procedure in wrist (removing an arthritic bone)
-Pinky hardware removal and possible infection inspection
I also got to hold the humeral head that was removed from the total shoulder replacement and got to be 'cement-watcher,' who tells the surgeons when the cement has hardened. I got to keep the cement, they wouldn't let me keep the humeral head.
Since I'm not allowed to take pictures in the operating room, here's a picture of my surgery last year on my knee. What you're looking at is below my left knee. Caution: Graphic.