Any job in the medical system has its spirit-lifting moments and its challenging ones. Equipment might malfunction, technology can glitch, patients might resist following orders, demand places one under stressful pressure, or one might just be having a bad day, for whatever reason it might be. Now picture an environment that's lacking in supplies and equipment, some even basic, that is financially non-incentivizing, that often lacks air conditioning in a hot climate, and that experiences frequent, sometimes sustained power outages. Welcome to some of the many things that doctors and every health care staff have to deal with here on a daily basis.
No kidding - at some point during every surgery I saw, the power went out; sometimes it would be restored almost immediately by a generator, sometimes it would stay out for a while … and this time, it went out and never came back.
The surgeon and assistant had finished removing the gall bladder from a patient and were just beginning suturing, when the power went out. Having become used to the familiar sound of the machines being drained of electricity, I waited patiently to hear the familiar sound of that power coming back. Five, ten, fifteen minutes later - it hadn't come back. That's when the surgical team realized they would be finishing this surgery without power, without light.
Fortunately for the patient, the team just had to suture the site and incision and had finished all of the operation. However, the surgeon was unsure how he would be able to finish some of the final touches without the electric cauterizer, as he would need to cut out a large chunk of fat tissue for the incision to return to a normal appearance and heal correctly. Frustrated for a minute, but accepting of the disadvantage he faced the next, he made the most of the situation.
Although not the ideal situation, he used the scalpel to shave off chunks of fat near the incision so that it could be closed properly; any minor bleeding was dabbed with gauze. Upon tying off the last suture of the skin 45 minutes from when the power had gone out, the operation was finished. Even by the time the patient was cleaned, transferred to her room, the room sanitized, myself changed into my normal clothes and heading out of the hospital doors, it never returned. Good thing the doctors and nurses here know how to work under the circumstances. I commend them for that.
No kidding - at some point during every surgery I saw, the power went out; sometimes it would be restored almost immediately by a generator, sometimes it would stay out for a while … and this time, it went out and never came back.
The surgeon and assistant had finished removing the gall bladder from a patient and were just beginning suturing, when the power went out. Having become used to the familiar sound of the machines being drained of electricity, I waited patiently to hear the familiar sound of that power coming back. Five, ten, fifteen minutes later - it hadn't come back. That's when the surgical team realized they would be finishing this surgery without power, without light.
Fortunately for the patient, the team just had to suture the site and incision and had finished all of the operation. However, the surgeon was unsure how he would be able to finish some of the final touches without the electric cauterizer, as he would need to cut out a large chunk of fat tissue for the incision to return to a normal appearance and heal correctly. Frustrated for a minute, but accepting of the disadvantage he faced the next, he made the most of the situation.
Although not the ideal situation, he used the scalpel to shave off chunks of fat near the incision so that it could be closed properly; any minor bleeding was dabbed with gauze. Upon tying off the last suture of the skin 45 minutes from when the power had gone out, the operation was finished. Even by the time the patient was cleaned, transferred to her room, the room sanitized, myself changed into my normal clothes and heading out of the hospital doors, it never returned. Good thing the doctors and nurses here know how to work under the circumstances. I commend them for that.