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Vietnam
"Our surgical marathon began early in the morning. After the first few minutes of bustling organization, four tables filled and the surgeries progressed simultaneously. Patient after patient was led into the OR for anesthesia and surgery. At first, the visiting surgeons worked as primary surgeons with local surgeons assisting.
Soon, as confidence and skill levels increased, the roles reversed. For the majority of our Vietnamese colleagues this was their first time performing ECCE with IOL implantation under a good coaxial microscope - in other words their first experience with modern, state of the art cataract surgery.
The enjoyment of the local ophthalmologists was obvious. Many of the cataract patients were young by our standards - in their early thirties - and this posed unexpected and unusual challenges for the visiting team.
Vietnamese OR nurses all function as circulators, not scrubs. They were fabulous; one could not imagine a more pleasant, helpful and efficient group. I alternated between circulating and scrubbing depending on what needed to be done at the moment."
"Post-op rounds again were a fine way to begin the day. The surgical queue shortened as the day continued. Patient after patient finished, and we came to the last case of the day, a difficult and complicated one. Then "it" happened. The "it" on a surgical expedition varies; it could be an anesthetic reaction or a patient stricken with a fit of violent coughing during a particularly delicate moment of surgery. One has to be prepared for anything.
In this case, "it" was a complete power outage that plunged the OR into darkness just after the lens was delivered. The surgeon froze as I plucked the penlight out of his pants pocket and headed for the footlockers where our trusty headlights waited. Much more convenient than flashlights, these lamps have become de rigueur in expedition quartermastering ever since they proved their worth by saving a clinic in the Guyanian jungle a few years ago. With our illumination secured, the surgery was successfully completed.
That night Dr. Luy and her staff took us on a dinner cruise on the Saigon River - a glorious end to a rigorous but rewarding day."
In this case, "it" was a complete power outage that plunged the OR into darkness just after the lens was delivered. The surgeon froze as I plucked the penlight out of his pants pocket and headed for the footlockers where our trusty headlights waited. Much more convenient than flashlights, these lamps have become de rigueur in expedition quartermastering ever since they proved their worth by saving a clinic in the Guyanian jungle a few years ago. With our illumination secured, the surgery was successfully completed.
That night Dr. Luy and her staff took us on a dinner cruise on the Saigon River - a glorious end to a rigorous but rewarding day."
