Week Two – Monday's Blog
After a very successful Clinic day, the Week 2 team is ready to begin their first day of surgery. The day starts off with CAMTA volunteers going through the schedule for the day and ensuring that all required paperwork is in place so that everything will run smoothly. There are 2 pediatric cases and 4 adult cases scheduled for the day. The first patients of the day come to the pre-op area to check in at 7:30 am. The Recovery Room nurses check the patient's heart rate, blood pressure and temperature. They also check to see when the patient last ate or had anything to drink, whether they have taken any medication recently, and any other required information all of which is recorded on the patient's chart.
.png)
.jpg)
2-year old patient Carla with her mother and Pediatric Recovery Room Nurse Bev Runka
Adult patients also see an Adult Anesthetist so that intravenous therapy (IV) can be administered. IV therapy allows the infusion of fluids directly into the vein. For pediatric patients, IV therapy is started once they are in the operating room and sedated. IV can be used to administer fluids for hydration, medication and blood to the patient if required.
.jpg)
Adult Recovery Nurses Pauline Worsfold and Simone la Guerre look through a patient's charts
Anesthetic Resident Dr. Andrea Kreitz starts an IV on an adult patient
After the IV is administered, a surgeon speaks with the patient to verify if there are any more questions, and to mark the hip which will be operated on. The pre-op team prepares the patient for the O.R. While the patient is in the pre-op area, the O.R Nurses prep the O.R.
In the Photo from Left to Right: CAMTA Volunteers Glenn Day (Respiratory Therapist), Marta Mora (Translator), Erica Nelson (Adult Ward Nurse) and Heather Perl (Adult O.R. Nurse) take 71 year old patient Gladdys Estela to the O.R for left hip surgery.
The first adult surgery of the day is a 56 year old female, Mercedes Dioselina, who requires bilateral hip surgery. After the pre-op check in where she has been seen by an Adult Recovery Room Nurse, Adult Anesthetist and Adult Orthopedic Surgeon, she is taken to the O.R. In the O.R., an Adult Anesthetist administers a spinal anesthetic to numb the patient from waist down, so that the patient does not feel any pain during the surgery. Some sedation is also provided to help the patient relax during the procedure. With a spinal anesthetic the surgery can be performed while the patient is awake.
(Left to Right) Dr. Armin Badre (Orthopedic Resident), Dr. Rejean Cloutier (Adult Orthopedic Surgeon), Dr. Sebastien Rodriguez-Elizade (Adult Orthopedic Surgeon), Tonya Kennedy (Adult O.R. Nurse) and Dr. Andrea Kreitz (Anesthetic Resident) make up the O.R. team that performs bilateral hip surgery on a 56 year old female patient.
.jpg)
.jpg)
Post-Op Patient Ward
After the surgery is complete, patients are transferred to a recovery room where Pediatric and Adult Recovery Room Nurses monitor the patients' vitals, check hemoglobin, and confirm that the anesthesia is wearing off. Patients typically spend 30 minutes to 1 hour in the recovery room before they are transferred to a ward. In the Ward, patients are seen by Ward Nurses and General Practitioners. Theyare also seen by physiotherapists who explain the exercises that will help with quick recovery. Patients must demonstrate that they can walk on crutches, and climb stairs to pass the physiotherapy assessment. It is typical for patients to remain in the ward for up to 2 days before they are discharged to go home.
.jpg)
Adult Ward Nurse Robin Dufresne, General Practitioner Dr. Gayle Hiebert and Pediatric Ward Nurse Dianne Cortez check on 2-year old Carla in the pediatric ward
.jpg)
Adult Ward Nurses Erica Nelson, Lisa Bleakley, Respiratory Therapis
O.R. Tools Sterilization Process
Orthopedic Surgeons use many surgical instruments during their procedures and it's essential that these tools are cleaned and then sterilized. The process of cleaning tools and sterilizing them is very meticulous and requires attention to detail. CAMTA volunteers spend many hours cleaning used O.R.instruments. To prevent any skin contact with the tools, the volunteers suit up in aprons, face shields, caps, shoe covers and gloves. In a designated area, they wash the tools in very hot water and special cleaning fluids to be sure that they are clean before they are wrapped for the sterilizer.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Administrator Aline Young prepares the O.R. tools for sterilization
After the tools are washed in hot water, they must be dried because any moisture left behind will contaminate the tools. Once dry the tools must be arranged in a tray as per procedure and packed in a special 2-layer cloth. The cloth must be folded in a specific manner so that when it is opened in the O.R. by the O.R. Nurses, there is no contact with the tools. A special colour changing marker tape is inserted in the tray and also on the outer most layer. Once the tray is packed, it is placed in an autoclave which heats up to 120 degrees Celsius for about 60 minutes. When the tools are removed from the autoclave, the change in the marker tape indicates to the O.R. Nurses that sterilization of tools is complete. The trays are allowed to sit and cool off for about 20 minutes and then the O.R. Nurses take the tools to the O.R. for the next case.
.jpg)