Neurosurgery...

For those who are interested, I thought I would share some of my medical week.... I started with the group of neurosurgeons this week. I was quite nervous, as I am any time I start a new rotation, but once I met the docs, my fears were eased. Both doctors are sincerely nice and interested in teaching. Additionally, they were so patient with my excessive questions and answered each one in detail. Neurosurgery, like certain other medical specialties, has a language and abbreviations all its own...For instance, on Monday, we did a L5-S1 HLD....really, should I know what that means? So I quickly learned to ask. (hemi-laminectomy and diskectomy at the lumbar-sacral junction which really means taking out a slipped disk in the lower back).

But that was not even the best part of the week. Apparently, the doc I am with does a procedure, AND HE IS THE ONLY ONE THAT DOES IT IN THE COUNTRY. And I got to see it on Friday. I got to see the brainstem in a living, breathing person. It is different than in a cadaver. He took the time to ask me about the anatomy and teach me about the procedure....ie benefits vs risks, the equipment, ongoing research....

Sadly, on Wednesday, I arrived prepared for two long, involved surgeries... However, I walked into a sad situation. A young (45 year old) had bled into his brain because of a combination of multiple health problems. When I arrived, they were doing testing to verify that he was, in fact, brain dead. Thought it was a learning experience, it was still quite heart-wrenching, especially when there is absolutely nothing left you can do but watch his seven year old daughter cry at the bedside.

Anyways, I know most of your will not find most of this interesting but I still wanted to share.