Yesterday was the Gujju New Year and I remember mummy always told me to study or do nice things on new years day because then you would do that the whole year. The whole family had loads of fun and tried to be happy because according to mom, dad, grandpa, and grandma, doing nice things on new years meant nice things throughout the year. So what did I do at this new year?
Woke up at 6:30am and got dressed in scrubs to go to the hospital. No, no I was not sick or anything, but I had my rotations at the hospital this past few weeks and yesterday was my very first day in the OR (operating room), more commonly known as OT(operation theatre) in India. Now what would a dental team do in OR? I wondered that too until recently. Usually there are patients that have profound mental rretardation or are auttistic and cannot take good care of their teeth. These patients have to be put to sleep and operated on. During this time, the dental team accomplishes a lot of things like fillings, cleaning, debridement, extractions, surgery, all kinds of stuff.
It was my first time and I was pretty excited. The whole scene of being in the hospital near different ORs, seeing surgeons in their green scrubs, gowns, masks, hairnets, shoecovers..it was all pretty exciting to my soul. The doc I was working with, DrH was nowhere to be seen and our first patient for the day was a fourteen yr old and I went into his pre-op and talked to his parents. The mother asked me, “So is this your first time in the OR?” The shy me said, “actually yes it is.” — mother: “well I hope it is pretty exciting for you”–”thanks, have done it a bunch of times but just not in the OR”
The nurse anesthetist walked in followed by Dr. H.
DrH: “Hey girl, whats up…ready to roll?”
Me: “uh huh”
DrH: “allright then we get started soon, go around the corner to rm blah blah”
Me: “thanks”
DrH was pretty good to work with he was a resident and should be around 26-27….twas great to be working with a young tall handsome doc 
I walk around the surgery rooms and feel oh so important that I was going to be in one of them. I walked into room bb and as soon as I walk in, the surgery assistant goes “mask mask mask!!!” ME:”huh? where? I dont see one in here.” SA: “thats coz you gotta have the mask on before you get in here. Walk out and its on the right. Make sure you get one with eye-shields”
I walk out and pick up a mask and walk in. Remember those rooms you always see in TVs and in surgeries shown on movies…huge lights on the top, lots of wires, and medical equipment, a huge sterile bed, people in green overalls! It was all there. I felt pretty overwhelmed because everyone knew what they were doing. The assstant was setting tables up, Dr. P who was the attending surgeon was setting up the movable cart, the anesthesiologist(who was Indian by the way) was checking the settings on this huge machine that I later realized would be connected to the patient’s IV and to monitor the patient’s vital signs. I just stood there with my mask on and took everything in. DrH walked in and said, “are we ready to go?” He got thumbs up signs from all the other three in the room. He looked at me and said, “you ready for this?” Me: “yep!” DrH: “allright then, its showtime!”
“showtime?” I think it takes only special people to say “showtime” before a surgery when you don’t know how long its gonna run, or how the patient is going to be, or what the whole deal entails. Showtime it was.
I waited with bated breath as they rolled the patient in. Four nurses followed by the nurse anesthetist walked in pushing a wheeled bed/chair. The patient’s mother was in the chair all dressed up in a gown and hat with her son in her lap, holding him tight. They aligned the chair next to the operating bed and everyone put gloves on. I followed suit.
The four nurses, three of whom were male, picked the son up, and put him on the bed. He started struggling and soon all of us were scrambling to calm him down. I was at the end of the table and pinned his feet down to the bed. The nurse anesthetist put a mask on his face to start the sedation while the anesthesiologist put in the IV. Soon, he calmed down and slowly very slowly his eyes shut. We released him and pretty soon he was on his way to some land that I have never known.
It was showtime.
….to be continued
)