And don't get it twisted, we weren't in some viewing room up above the operating room like those seen in Grey's Anatomy, no, no, no, we were literally at the man's head in the thick of it, staring down into his chest. We looked on in awe as this chest was not only opened up with a skill saw, but then proceeded to be placed on a heart and lung bypass machine, had three diseased vessels bypassed to give this man a longer, healthier life, and then proceeded to save his life not once but twice when he proceeded to go into an lethal arrhythmia (remember in those TV shows when they yell V. Fib, shock 'em!!! Well there you go). It was the craziest experience ever!!! At one point we actually (and when I say we I definitely mean the surgeon cause God knows I was just standing there with my mouth open in total amazement) had to put the patient back on bypass after having taking him off, because he was clearly not tolerating it. Thankfully the surgeon found the culprit area, fixed it, and was then able to successfully wean the patient off of bypass, but this was all after we got to witness him not only internally shock the patient twice but also insert his hand into the patient's chest and manually massage his heart to save him!!! INSANE!!! All the operating staff, nurses, surgeons, anesthesiologists and perfusionists (the heart and lung bypass peeps) were all very accommodating and informative, making for a very positive experience! Luckily our large breakfast prior to the surgery stayed where it should tucked away in our stomachs throughout the whole ordeal and according to the operating room nurse, the surgeon and anesthesiologist were very impressed with us and our answers to their many questions (GO 6WEST!!!). We look forward to seeing the patient back up on our floor after his recovery in ICU.
Educate yourselves... ;)
