Working in the Recovery Room to the sounds of TYPEWRITERS?????

We had a really good 1st day & not too late...I was back at the hotel by 9:30 :)  Bil Rancic carried in the 1st patient as cameras rolled & the official mission surgery Day #1 started.  We ended up doing 24 cases (patients) who had 36 procedures (yes some pts had 2 or more).  One case was postponed at the end of the night & another one was cancelled.

The first cases on all 5 tables were babies & they all came to the recovery room within a 15 min span....so 5 patients 5 recovery room nurses each patient w/ a nurse, anesthesiologist & surgeon to give report & YES each pt w/ a 2 Medical Records Clerks to type the Operation report with carbon paper so they have 2 copies so another 10 people & typewriters not to mention a few crying children made for a very noisy & busy recovery room - it was a bit crazy to work all day as people typed - the unique experiences you have on a mission! 

I appreciated so many things - like the fact that we had enough sheets to change them between patients & we had blankets & oxygen masks & running water - it was great :)  The morning cases were mostly babies so I did get to give away some of the clothes I brought.  The littlest patient Rosa the 3 month old (who they typically wouldn't do) had her surgery & had a rough go of it - we had to do quite a bit of interventions & thought we might need to send her to the neonatal ICU for the night but we kept her with us in Recovery all day & by evening took her to the floor on a monitor, oxygen with an airway & IV fluids.  Her young parents were pretty scared & I got to spend some time talking to them.  I found out that the moms mother had passed away recently just before Rosa was born so it has been a hard few months for this new young mom  - to be grieving the loss of her mother, pregnant & have a baby with a Cleft lip & be a new mom w/o her own mom for help which is important in all cultures but especially so here.  The young mom was on the verge of tears all day & everytime I saw her I sat down & just held her hand as we talked.  I stayed after most of the team left at the end of the night to spend a little extra time with her just to reassure her all was going to be okay - I also gave her 3 dresses I had that were size 6 mos since I didn't think we'd have any other tiny babies!I will go back & check on them first thing in the morning :)

By the end of the night after being on my feet for 15 hours my feet were killing me - there was only one chair in the entire Recovery room & a few stools that the local nurses used....by about 8 pm we had the mission coordinator get us 4 folding chairs from the screening area & I don't think I have ever been so excited to just sit for a few minutes!!!
 
There were 3 handsome high school boys from a private school here who came to volunteer as translators & were very helpful but the best moment with them was when all 3 were in the recovery room & we had a fussy 4 year old boy & the Mexican nurse got these BIG boys to sing a Mexican preschool type song with hand motions to this little boy - it was a priceless sight :)

The system here is a bit different - in the Surgery area there are "magic lines" & "half walls" where no one can cross unless they are in scrubs & surgery attire.  So the parents walk or carry their child down to surgery & then hand them across the line to the nurse...very odd & at the end the patient is brought out on a gurney on one side of the line/wall & then transferred to another gurney on the other side of the line/wall or babies are handed back to their parents.  Also once you change into scrubs you are to sit on a bench & put one shoe cover on & swing that leg across the line then put the other shoe cover on & only then are you ready to be in the surgery area (as long as you have a cap & mask on too!)  Top it off with the fact that the shoe covers here are like putting pillowcases on your feet that you have to roll down & tie around your ankle....just a few more things to appreciate about Western medical centers :)  I guess those germs know not to cross that line!!!

Katrin is the other recovery room nurse with me & she is wonderful & Christoph is our intensivist & as a team with the Mexican nurses all went well.  We came home tired & just had dinner at the hotel. 

After 3 days on this mission I'm beginning to realize how many unusual & unique experiences I had on my Kenya mission - so many patients & events that are not typical - but all of which were very meaningful to me.  I already know I will have similar experiences here but perhaps not as dramatic - whihc is fine by me.

I was able to get on Facebook & saw that Sarah had a good 1st day of school so that made me happy from afar - thanks to dear friends who made her day by bringing her cookies after school :)  Gotta get to bed its after midnite again & the 5:45 or 6 am wake up call will definitely come way too soon!!! Buenos Noches mi familia y amigos!