One of the skills I am hoping to learn from Andrew while I am here is how to repair 3rd and 4th degree tears. These are a childbirth injury where woman have a tear into the anal sphincter and if it is not repaired properly it can have devastating consequences.
So monday morning there was a gap in the labour ward so I went to theatre. The first lady Andrew was operating on had had a 4th degree tear for 28 years. She received the injury with the birth of her first child 28 years earlier. It was only when her daughter had a baby that she realised that her anatomy was not as it should be and then on hearing one of our adverts on the radio she came for repair at Selian.
Te patients are under spinal during the operation so she was chatting away to us through Mruma - our Gynae registrar. She was fantastic. So enquiring and courageous, She had very little education but I said to Andrew This is the type of woman I would vote for president! She was fantastic. So she left the theatre not half an hour or so later, with the quality of her life totally changed. What a blessing for her.
The next case for the day was a patient we have called the Rhino lady. She arrived at the hospital about the same time as I did. She was brought to Selain having been charged by a Rhino we heard. She shattered her pelvis in the process and from the shattered bone she developed a fistula. Andrew said in all the 1000's of fistula he has repaired there has never been one before caused by a Rhino. Well after months in hospital for healing of bedsores and trying to stabilise her pelvis she too was ready for theatre on monday.
The fact that she was even alive was a miracle. As it turns out in theatre we heard that actually the real story was she was trampled by a hippo, hence her fractured pelvis. Andrew repaired her unusual fistula and she went back to the ward.
We had a good chuckle because next day she was wearing a t shirt with a hippo on it and some swahili and Andrew said he wanted to write - I SURVIVED THE HIPPO !
2 lives radically changed by skilled surgery. What a joy to catch a glimpse of this again.
It is always so good to be in a place where you are learning new things. And here there is certainly much that I am learning everyday. Also to have a collegue like Andrew is such a priveldge. Last week we had a C/S for Fetal Distress and as I have said before speed is not our strong point. Well my nature is to keep pressing everyone to go faster but Andrew in his calm way just gently chivves everyone along and then sits patiently on the stool waiting for the staff to be ready. But I know as he is sitting there he is praying for the mum and her baby. So what is the end result from fetal distress out comes a perfect little person crying away, no sign of distress. When will I learn that it should always be prayer first.Yes one can pray and work but working with a man of such faith has indeed been and is such a privilege.
So monday morning there was a gap in the labour ward so I went to theatre. The first lady Andrew was operating on had had a 4th degree tear for 28 years. She received the injury with the birth of her first child 28 years earlier. It was only when her daughter had a baby that she realised that her anatomy was not as it should be and then on hearing one of our adverts on the radio she came for repair at Selian.Te patients are under spinal during the operation so she was chatting away to us through Mruma - our Gynae registrar. She was fantastic. So enquiring and courageous, She had very little education but I said to Andrew This is the type of woman I would vote for president! She was fantastic. So she left the theatre not half an hour or so later, with the quality of her life totally changed. What a blessing for her.
The next case for the day was a patient we have called the Rhino lady. She arrived at the hospital about the same time as I did. She was brought to Selain having been charged by a Rhino we heard. She shattered her pelvis in the process and from the shattered bone she developed a fistula. Andrew said in all the 1000's of fistula he has repaired there has never been one before caused by a Rhino. Well after months in hospital for healing of bedsores and trying to stabilise her pelvis she too was ready for theatre on monday.
The fact that she was even alive was a miracle. As it turns out in theatre we heard that actually the real story was she was trampled by a hippo, hence her fractured pelvis. Andrew repaired her unusual fistula and she went back to the ward.
We had a good chuckle because next day she was wearing a t shirt with a hippo on it and some swahili and Andrew said he wanted to write - I SURVIVED THE HIPPO !
2 lives radically changed by skilled surgery. What a joy to catch a glimpse of this again.
It is always so good to be in a place where you are learning new things. And here there is certainly much that I am learning everyday. Also to have a collegue like Andrew is such a priveldge. Last week we had a C/S for Fetal Distress and as I have said before speed is not our strong point. Well my nature is to keep pressing everyone to go faster but Andrew in his calm way just gently chivves everyone along and then sits patiently on the stool waiting for the staff to be ready. But I know as he is sitting there he is praying for the mum and her baby. So what is the end result from fetal distress out comes a perfect little person crying away, no sign of distress. When will I learn that it should always be prayer first.Yes one can pray and work but working with a man of such faith has indeed been and is such a privilege.
