This week was spent in the OR unit! When we first toured the unit way back in June, the charge nurse, Ma’am Anna told us we would be allowed to scrub in and assist in surgeries so this week has been long-anticipated. On the first day, we got an orientation of the unit. We walked by one of the surgical suites and the surgeon actually allowed us to walk-in mid procedure. Dr. Nazareth, one of the best urologists in Batangas, showed us the muscle layer, fascia, and subcutaneous layer. He was also one of the surgeons who was a part of the first ever kidney transplant team at Cabrini. We saw a lot of gastroscopies and colonoscopies throughout the week. There is a lot of downtime between procedures, so we got a chance to get to know the nurses and surgeons and anesthesiologists. They were all so welcoming and willing to help us to get in the flow of the OR. During one of our chats with the anesthesiologists, he told us that his daughter is actually an OBGYN back at OSF St. Joseph and Carle Bromenn in Bloomington! Such a small world! It also brought me a sense of home as someone we met knew exactly where we came from. He told us to seek her out when we have our clinical rotations next semester so that should be cool!
The most exciting day for me this week was on Friday! It was my turn to scrub in to assist a surgery and this one was going to be a TAHBSO procedure, total abdominal hysterectomy-bilateral salpingo-oopherectomy. I met the surgeon, Dr. Villadelgado, and the anesthesiologist. Got my gown on, gloves, and entered the sterile field. It was the surgeon, Joey who was the main assist, Karlene who was the person in charge of handing the instruments, me who held the retractor and instruments, and Charles the circulating nurse. It was so cool! The surgeon was keeping me in the loop after every move he made and showed me a lot of the anatomy. Saw the uterus, cervix, fallopian tubes, vaginal hole, intestines, bladder, appendix, and all the layers and probably showed me more that I don’t recall.The uterus and cervix were removed and the other tubes were tied off. There were multiple myelomas and some endometriomas with some brown liquid squirting out. This surgeon was very experienced and talented. He worked so carefully fast making sure no damage or bleeding was done. The whole procedure took about 2 hours. After the incision was sutured up, the patient was taken to PACU to recover until she got moved to Station 1, the med-surg floor.
This weekend was a much needed rest and recharge time to get ready for next week which will get spent in the hemodialysis unit and chemotherapy unit!
2 responses to “WEEK 4”