This afternoon I got to observe surgeries! And really... I wonder if I should have become a surgeon. Or a surgical nurse. It was SO cool. Firsthand look at how awesome Mercy Ships really is, the amazing surgeons and surgical staff that pull it off, the wonderful westernized facilities found in Africa... All just incredible, and I'm so honored to be a part of it right now.
First I got all official looking and put on scrubs (Which are SO comfortable!) and then got to see the end of a hernia repair on a woman who had 5 (or was it 6?) children and her husband was killed by rebels during the war. Sad.
Then I saw a hand tumor where this woman's hand had a huge tumor in the palm and ring/pinkie fingers that they removed and then fused the two fingers together, as separate they were too weak and the bones too brittle after being deformed from the tumor.
Then in the next room I saw a boy of 18 months whose eye was nearly completely eaten away by a tumor have it removed, some muscle from behind his ear put in his eye socket and his eye sewn shut permanently. Terribly sad for the boy, but then again, he had already long since lost sight in the tumor-filled eye, and now, hopefully, they got the entire (non-cancerous) tumor removed and the boy can live a relatively normal life. Incredible surgeons.
Then there was a baby who had a cranial tumor removed last week who was leaking cerebrospinal fluid and they had to cut him back open to see where the problem was and figure out how to fix it. They thought they might have to take a piece of cartilage from his ear to plug the hole but tried just sutures first and it seemed to be working, so they closed him back up and will wait and see what happens.
Overall, it was an AMAZING experience. Several nurses commented on the fact that I wasn't at all woozy or sick. Nice! We have some brilliant doctors and nurses on board and I loved being able to see them in action. I would totally do it every day if I could, unfortunately, crew are allowed to observe surgeries only once per field service (country) so that's all I will get to see. But it was cool.
Just had to write while I'm still excited. :) Peace. Krissy
First I got all official looking and put on scrubs (Which are SO comfortable!) and then got to see the end of a hernia repair on a woman who had 5 (or was it 6?) children and her husband was killed by rebels during the war. Sad.
Then I saw a hand tumor where this woman's hand had a huge tumor in the palm and ring/pinkie fingers that they removed and then fused the two fingers together, as separate they were too weak and the bones too brittle after being deformed from the tumor.
Then in the next room I saw a boy of 18 months whose eye was nearly completely eaten away by a tumor have it removed, some muscle from behind his ear put in his eye socket and his eye sewn shut permanently. Terribly sad for the boy, but then again, he had already long since lost sight in the tumor-filled eye, and now, hopefully, they got the entire (non-cancerous) tumor removed and the boy can live a relatively normal life. Incredible surgeons.
Then there was a baby who had a cranial tumor removed last week who was leaking cerebrospinal fluid and they had to cut him back open to see where the problem was and figure out how to fix it. They thought they might have to take a piece of cartilage from his ear to plug the hole but tried just sutures first and it seemed to be working, so they closed him back up and will wait and see what happens.
Overall, it was an AMAZING experience. Several nurses commented on the fact that I wasn't at all woozy or sick. Nice! We have some brilliant doctors and nurses on board and I loved being able to see them in action. I would totally do it every day if I could, unfortunately, crew are allowed to observe surgeries only once per field service (country) so that's all I will get to see. But it was cool.
Just had to write while I'm still excited. :) Peace. Krissy
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