I was called in this morning because a
baby was being delivered! Sadly, I didn't make it in time for the
actual delivery – apparently when the mother came in to the ER she
was already crowning. By the time I got there the baby was already
delivered but there were some complications. The infant suffered from
meconium aspiration syndrome (MAS), which is when the meconium (the
infants stool while in the womb) makes its way into the babies lungs
and stomach. One of the doctors on duty told me how, normally, they
would use a laryngoscope and an endotracheal tube to ensure proper
suctioning but there was no time to prepare so the doctor manually
inserted the suction without the aid of the laryngoscope. The
fluid coming from the lungs and stomach had a yellowish tinge and the
babies overall skin color was a light grey. The doctor kept flushing
and suctioning until the fluid was clear. Afterward the baby started
regaining color. While that was going on, a second doctor was
stitching the mother because of a tear that had occurred along the
vaginal wall during delivery. The doctor asked me to assist so I held
open the vagina and sponged away blood while the doctor stitched.
The stitching was amazing for two
reasons. First, there was so much blood I had no idea how the doctor
even knew what she was doing. Secondly, and even more impressive, was
that the doctor stitching only has a thumb and shortened pinky finger.
I'm not sure if she lost the fingers or was born with a condition,
but it was awe-inspiring watching her work. It just goes to show that
anyone can practice medicine if they're willing to learn.
Anyway, the doctor on duty two weeks
ago told me if I bring him a pig leg, he'll teach me how to stitch on
it. Then we'll cook it up later and eat it.
Here's a couple pictures of how things are organized here:
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| Each ticket is color coded describe if the medication is OD, BID, TID, or PRN. |
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| Self-explanatory |
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