Hello everyone, Olivia here today! We had a busy day in the OR where Dr. Sutton and Dr. Inyasi and the other medical team members performed another total knee replacement! I got the chance to scrub into the OR today and get to assist Dr. Sutton. I was thrilled to have the opportunity to scrub in! Not many nursing students get the chance to assist in the OR for such a difficult surgery. Hope Ministries has allowed me to see more cases, meet more medical personal, and learn so many new things than I could have never imagined. We had two surgeries scheduled today, however out first patient was brought down to the OR and she had a seriously high blood pressure. The team was disappointed to have to turn her away, but we all knew it was for her safety. Gayle and Dr. Sutton were great at educating today about pre-operative care and ensuring our patients really are prepared for surgery so they will have the best outcomes. Our second patients surgery was difficult, but very successful. Dr. Sutton is an incredible teacher and he not only performed the surgery well, but he taught all the Tanzanian doctors so well. Total knee replacements often vary from case to case, so taking time to teach and ensure the best sizes is important. Dr. Sutton feels that not only was a successful surgery performed, but lots was learned!
Michaela got the chance to observe a lumbar spinal surgery! She really enjoyed getting to observe something like this. Spinal surgery is very complex, but the doctors were good at informing her and teaching her a new part of the body. She put in a catheter today as well and was very successful! We are all loving the chance to practice our skills. After our surgery today, we got to visit our previous patients form the past surgeries. They are both doing well and are walking! The PT’s are doing an excellent job and their progress is great!
Emma was the one who headed to the orphanage today! She got to meet the social workers who work at the orphanage and had a blast talking with them. She said she had to get pretty creative with games due to a lots of rain today. Simon says, down by the banks, tik tac toe, heads up seven up, and mister fox were all taught and enjoyed! Her teaching project covering English went very well! She taught them lots of animal names, English phrases, and some other fun words. They had fun learning how to communicate in a different way! The kids English levels definitely varied, but they were all excited to learn more! Overall, it was such a great day and everyone learned so much! Thanks to everyone who follows along on our day-to-day adventures! We appreciated prayers for our team and for all the patients we have encountered!
