Surgery Week

Well, the last week has been super busy!!! The German doctors came to do surgeries all week at the hospital!! We started on the 16th with patient check-ins for monday surgery. Everyday the patients having surgery would be there, the patients coming in for check-in for surgery the following day, and the regular/new patients coming for consultation with the "white doctors". haha. When the white doctors come.... many people want to come get checked out. It's funny.

We did about 20-30 surgeries per day, starting at 6am and ending usually after 10pm at night!!! We eat when we have a bit of down time, but mostly it was just busy busy. The main surgeries being performed were cataract, growth removals, and glaucoma operations. Several patients stayed all week as they were having both eyes done!!! The flat surgery price is 150.00 GH cedis. Which is about $104.oo USD. Some people that can be 3 or 4 months salary!!! People here are severly underpaid, it is really sad actually. Many of the patients were older too, so perhaps their children paid for it, but we had some young patients too. The youngest was 8yrs. old, a girl with cataract.

All week I was in charge of consent forms for surgery. The patients would come register and get "lashed".... their eye lashes cut off... then to me to sign a consent form. I created my own little desk, and it worked out pretty well. I did that all morning and into the afternoon, then after all the patients had checked in, I would float around helping where I was needed. Most of us were technically done by about 5 or 6pm, but we stayed as "moral support" for the staff in the eye theatre, as they couldn't leave until the surgeries were complete.

I observed some of the surgeries, it was very intersting.... though eyeballs sticking out from beneath a sheet is not too attractive. I used to watch spays and neuters at the animal hospital... and never had a problem, but watching those eyes being operated on made me kind of queezy. haha. :)

The patients are hilarious. Especially the older one's. They are very talkative, and often don't listen to the doctor - especially the men. There was this one old man.... I don't remember his name.... we just call him Papa.... and he would get out of his bed all the time and go outside when he should be resting!! When he saw Mrs.Esaw (Maa) or myself coming, he would start running inside and jump in his bed!!! It was so funny. I made lots of "friends".... well kind of. By the end of the week, everyone knew my name. Whether they knew me as Stephanie or as Akosua Gyamfua.... when I walked down the hall, many people would be calling me and greeting me. The patients and families are very very grateful for everything we were doing. We often were bought "minerals" which are bottled drinks... fanta, coke, sprite, etc. We would have fruit, bread, eggs, etc. brought to the house, or to Mrs. Esaw's office in appreciation.

The hospital looks nothing like back home. Just think very very simple, with many open spaces. I will try and take pics this week. It is very different.

The surgeries are finished, and we are back to the normal everyday consultations.... the doctors return in November for another week of fun!!!!