Hi all,
Just wanted to send off a quick post before leaving for the weekend! We finish clinic early tomorrow (Friday) to get on the road to St. Lucia, a popular satellite destination here in the Kwazulu-Natal province, and about a 2.5-3 hour drive north up the coastline. We will be going on a few safaris, in the morning, evening, and at night. They will feature animals such as hippos, crocodiles, zebras, giraffes, and of course, the Big 5 (lion, rhino, elephant, cape bison, and leopard). Kind of like the Durban equivalent of the Garden Route!
It was also a very interesting week in the medical field. I have been in the surgical ward, much different than pediatrics. The facilities are much older than before and seem to be on their final legs. A new hospital is actually in the works. On our floor they divide the patient load between two surgical teams, and our team uses each day in a different capacity. Modays and Tuesdays are in the operating theatre (OR), Wednesdays in "scopes" or the gastro clinic to do endoscopies (scope into the mouth, down the esophagus, stomach, and into the small intestine) and colonoscopies (scope into the anus and up through the colon). Thursdays are in the clinic and Fridays a large round through the ward.
Monday was a bit of a let down because no procedures were scheduled, but we met our team and joined them in the round. Also visiting in the team are two German medical student and an Austrian.
Tuesday was the highlight of the week, and Christie and I were in theatre the whole day, and saw four procedures.
They included:
1. Laproscopy to probe the abdominal cavity for tuberculosis (there was)
2. Excision of breast tissue (in a man) behind the nipple to check for cancer
3. & 4. Removal of a hernial sac in the abdomen and repair.
After having great difficulty in the theatre a few weeks ago, I was surprised with how well I coped this time around. Only on one occasion during the first procedure did I feel the need to sit down, and after was fine!
Viewing endoscopies and colonoscopies the following day was also quite surreal the first time. It was very cool to actually view the inside of these organs in a living person. It actually reminded me of the one "Magic School Bus" episode where the class shrinks themselves to see the inside of the body.
Medically, I think I've enjoyed this week more than the last. The team has been fun and they are very willing to answer the many questions I've had.
Just a interesting fact: Surgeons in South Africa (and the U.K.) actually switch their title to "Mr." from "Dr." once they have passed their final surgical exam and can practice independently. Seems silly to get off the high of graduating med school, getting called Dr, and then a few years later, going back to Mr. The reason has roots in historical surgery, where the physicians were not skilled enough with a knife and so the barbers who had much better control, but no medical degree, actually performed the surgery. Since then, surgeons retain the title of "Mr."
Sorry for no new pictures today, but I hope to share some of the many I take in St. Lucia when we come back!
Best,
David
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