Thank you for all of your responses so far. And just a reminder to anyone else interested in submitting an article: this edition’s theme will be called ”Operating After Hours,” and, as the title implies, please share any stories you have about surgical experiences that have occurred after normal operating hours.
Everyone is invited to contribute. Please send […]
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On call this past weekend, I was paged to the post-partum floor to evaluate a young woman who had vaginally delivered a healthy baby boy 16 hours ago. Her chief complaint? Intractable back pain.
[Background: She had delivered 2 babies aided by an epidural block in the past, and complained of back pain during this pregnancy, which […]
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Posted in Nurse anesthesia, YOU, patients on Dec 29th, 2007
Not the best news for the New Year, but something that we all need to be aware of and get a little outraged over, just the same.
I have already written before about how Propofol is your friend and mine. Now, some insurance companies have determined that its use is medically unnecessary for colonoscopies. This is […]
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It’s that most wonderful time of the year, and I am gearing up for my annual Christmas call marathon. I go in to work at the hospital on Christmas eve day, and go home the morning after Christmas. Yeah, yeah, it’s about 48 hours, give or take, but it’s a worthwhile thing to do, and […]
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This past Saturday I was covering obstetrics, better known as OB, attending to the needs of women in various stages of labor and delivery.
A woman in the throes of labor is a force to be reckoned with. In between contractions, she is an expectant mom, filled with worries and concerns, generally cooperative and conversant. During […]
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There is nothing more instantly gratifying for an anesthesia provider than relieving someone’s pain. This can be both the lure and the catch that reels in so many nurses and physicians that go into this specialty.
When patients are asleep for surgery, we deliver some of their analgesia proactively, in anticipation of the expected pain; and […]
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Yesterday, like most days, my patients came in all different shapes, sizes, and situations.
Patient #1 was petite and frail, in her early 60’s, and only 5′ tall. She had the body habitus that we who work in the OR always love to see. Light as a feather, and easily lifted and re-positioned. Which we needed to do […]
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The power of our drugs never ceases to amaze me. Take muscle relaxants, for instance. By delivering as little as a teaspoon of a drug like rocuronium or vecuronium, we anesthesia providers can literally paralyze YOU for your surgery. This comes in pretty handy when your surgeon does not want you to move during your operation!
The […]
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Posted in Nurse anesthesia, patients on Nov 26th, 2007
Not that long ago, my husband had a colonoscopy done at the institution where I work. It was a no-brainer decision for him to have it done there - I know and work with the members of both the gastroenterology and anesthesiology departments, so my husband and I had a certain comfort level with who his […]
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The laparoscopic cholecystectomy (removing the gall bladder via 4 small abdominal holes)
If Sushruta could only see surgery today, his turban would probably be twirling. Even as recently as 20 years ago, who would have imagined having your gall bladder removed via 4 small sholes on your belly and being sent home later that day? Minimal pain? Minimal […]
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