A Clinical Reflection: Paging Dr. Elias to O.R. #5

"15 blade, suction, 1% Lidocaine..." These are some of the things you will hear on a routine basis in the O.R. Why is this relevant you may ask? Well, the story I'm about to tell you is a recount of my experience in the O.R. this week.


Where the magic happens. lol :-)


They don't call me 'Doc' for nothing, lol :-)

As I approached the door of O.R. #5, I heard the voices of the RN and the Surgical Tech. They were doing a pre-op checklist, which is, a common protocol in which the nurse & surgical tech determine if they have all the necessary supplies (i.e. blades, syringes, and/or any other surgical instruments) for the procedure. If not, they get everything they need. Once all that is done, they bring in the patient, ask the patient general questions such as their name, if they have any allergies,and so on and so forth. Then, the patient is placed under anesthesia. Afterwards, the surgeon comes in along w/ his partner. They get dressed in proper surgical attire (i.e. sterile gloves, gown, protective eyewear, etc.) and the leading surgeon does a pre-op checklist of his own w/ the members of his surgical team. Then, the fun begins. In my surgical suite, they were doing an AV Fistula placement. An arteriovenous fistula (AV fistula) is the connection of a vein and an artery.



The artery & vein used in this particular surgery was the radial artery & the radial vein.



The purpose of this procedure was to provide a long-lasting site through which blood can be removed and returned during hemodialysis, a procedure that performs the functions of the kidneys in people whose kidneys have failed. When the vein and artery are joined, the vein gradually becomes larger and stronger, creating the fistula that provides vascular access years longer than other types of access and with fewer complications. The fistula develops over a period of months after the surgery.

Sometimes dialysis is only needed temporarily, but some people need it for the rest of their lives or until a kidney is available for a transplant.

De-Brief:

The procedure took approx an hr and 40 mins. The patient tolerated it well and there were no complications. Therefore, it's safe to say it was a success. My hopes are that the patient will take charge of his health and will seek the proper care to get himself back to a level of optimal health.

With that being said, I hope you enjoyed this post. Feel free to share your thought and/or leave any comments that you may have. I'd love to hear from you. Have a great weekend. Take care. Peace, Love, and God Bless. This is 'thedoc' and I'm signing out. 1.