Almost done at Hospital El Progreso...

Things at work have turned around a bit since the last post.  Well, things are actually largely the same, but I think that I have changed my attitude about them somewhat.  Anyways, last Tuesday was a fairly interesting day, as we started things off by 'learning' how to 'weld'.  I say 'learning' because I really had no idea what the guy was saying to me or what he was trying to convey, and 'weld' because I think even an inexperienced welder would shudder at the sight of the connections we produced.  Regardless, it was really cool to fire up the machine and let the sparks fly!  I definitely was learning through trial and error, and had quite a bit of the latter.  Within about 5 minutes of getting started, it seemed like the whole maintenance department was circled around myself and Marcello as we fumbled around with the equipment and tried not to look terrified.  (For those of you who are interested, I think we were using the SMAW welding technique.  All I know is we had about 70 Amps running through that thing... enough to do more than a little damage!)  We finally managed to get some decent-enough 'welds' to join some lengths of chain to hooks, which we used to secure oxygen tanks to the walls. 

Not sure if it is supposed to spark and smoke like that, but it was a lot of fun...

The chains, in action.

Later Tuesday, we were installing some of these chains in the surgery recovery room, and got some interesting news.  It turned out that there was a partial hip replacement surgery about to start next door, and we were invited to watch!  I had never seen a surgery before and knew how violent orthopedic procedures could be, but thought I would be able to handle it pretty well...

Nope.

For whatever reason, the surgeons had barely put scalpel to skin before I started feeling lightheaded, and after about 10 minutes (or maybe less) I had to go 'get some air'.  I tried going back in a few minutes later, and only lasted a few minutes more.  I took a brief walk, sat down for a while, and headed back for another try.  This time, as soon as I opened the door, I saw the surgeon swinging a hammer like John Henry and pounding a large-ish metal pole into the patient's femur.  I immediately turned around sat back down for the remaining 90 minutes :)  I'm not sure why it happened that way, but I have redeemed myself in the past couple days.  Yesterday we witnessed a laparoscopic gall bladder removal, and today we saw a neurosurgery where the surgeons excised a tumor from the parietal lobe... and I didn't have any trouble with either one.  I'm guessing the orthopedic surgery was a bad choice to open my surgery-viewing account.  I hope we get another chance to see more surgeries in the next couple of days, the are really remarkable on a number of levels.  The part I find the most impressive is the coordination between the different members of the surgical team.  They are all focused on performing their own tasks, but are aware of everything else that is going on and known what needs to be done if unexpected circumstances arise.  Really impressive stuff to see, and I'm glad my stomach has thickened enough for me to do so.

Anyways, after the laparoscopic procedure, we got a chance to speak with the surgeon about some of the equipment she was using.  Apparently, she had been having some trouble with some of the ESU probes that were used for that procedure, and showed us what kind of shape they were in.  Some insulation had been worn off on the shafts and near the tips of a couple of the cutting/coagulation probes, and someone had tried to patch them with electrical tape (a really bad idea, since it is not very biocompatible, virtually impossible to sterilize thoroughly, and had begun to unravel and interfered with the laparoscopic access ports).  We knew that heat shrink tubing would probably be the best way to repair the probes, so we have been on a two-day hunt for the appropriate tubing in both El Progreso and nearby San Pedro Sula.  We eventually found something that would work this afternoon, after trying about 6 different stores over the past 2 days.  We are looking forward to trying it out on Thursday!

Update: it worked!

The tip in action, inside of a patient.

This Saturday, the entire group of EWH students is heading to Managua, Nicaragua for the end-of-program wrap up meeting/conference that will last until Sunday afternoon.  I am not necessartily looking forward to the proceedings, but I am very much looking forward to seeing everyone again!  It will be good to catch up with the people who we haven't seen for a while, and get a chance to say our goodbyes.  I cannot believe things have gone by so quickly.

I will probably update again after the conference.  I will be staying in Central America for another week after that, mostly just because I can :)  I am excited about getting a chance to relax and really take in the culture and sights in a more laid-back atmosphere.

Until next time!
-Eric