There is a surgeon who comes to our hospital who performs only one type of surgery. Nothing unusual about that, is there?
He actually is on staff at several area hospitals, doing surgery at each one about once a week.
But what distinguishes this surgeon from all the others is the nature of his business. He is known as the […]

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The sun goes down, but the OR lights do not go out. Most people pursue a break in the action on the weekends, but no so for the Operating Room. The unexpected and uninvited operation can occur ANY time, and usually does! Surgery after hours . . . .
Buckeye Surgeon knows all too well what […]

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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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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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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 Operating Room is a whole other universe, and all the usual rules that apply in the outside world tend to fall away in here. That is not to say that the OR is a bad place; quite the opposite, it is a very orderly and territorial environment. It lost its circadian rhythms just moments […]

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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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My coiffure in the morning really gives me a lift.
But by the end of the day, it’s a collossal flop.
It just doesn’t seem right that at the end of my shift,
My hair should resemble a second-hand mop.
You see, while at work, I must stuff all my hair
Into a flimsy paper bonnet where it cannot be seen.
A […]

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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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