Procedures

This week at the hospital I got to do a couple of procedure type things. Over the past week I had seen 4 patients with pleural effusions (basically fluid in the lungs). They all came through the outpatient department so by the 4th one I had been taught by the doctors to diagnose pleural effusions based on looking at X-rays, auscultating and percussing the lungs. I had also watched Dr. Kajese insert a chest tube and Dr. Kabonzi insert a catheter into the lung to drain the fluid.

One of the patients who was now in the ward was brought in to have her lung drained right before lunch. Jordan came to get me and Dr. Kabonzi said that I couldn't leave yet because I was going to drain her lung! I thought he was kidding so I laughed but he said "no really" and handed me a pair of gloves. The needle that needs to be inserted with the cannula is very thick. I needed to insert it at the 5th intercostal space on her left side. Dr. Kabonzi put in the shot of local anesthetic and then aspirated some of me the pus/fluid and said now you can't say you can't get anything out! I was nervous to push the needle in because I felt like lungs were a big deal and that I was going to stab the heart (even though that wouldn't happen).

For once I was thankful that the patient spoke Shona because I felt badly that I was asking the doctor how to do the procedure while I was doing it to the patient haha. I pushed in the needle and nothing came out. Then Dr. Kabonzi couldn't get anything out either (thankfully because then I wasn't doing it wrong!). So I tried again in the 6th intercostal space and straw colored fluid began flowing out- success! We taped the catheter in to let the fluid drain for awhile. I felt like skipping all the way back to the house I was so excited that I got to do something like that.

Later in the afternoon we had a young child with an abscess behind his right ear. He came into the outpatient department to have the abscess taken care of. I got to the IND (incision and drainage). I put on the sterile gloves and the nurses aid set up my sterile field with the surgical tools. I had to put the blade on the handle and I couldn't figure out how to get it on at first (I don't usually play around with surgical knives haha). But I got it on and cut into the abscess. Then I expressed it to get all of the pus out. It probably seems very gross to most people but I really like doing things like this.

I was so excited for everything I got to do that day. It is going to make it even harder to return home and not be able to do things like this! Being able to do these procedures helps me with nursing too because I really understand the whole process from diagnosis, to the procedure, to care for the patient after. I can't believe I only have 2 weeks left at the hospital, it is going to be so hard to leave.

Doing the IND