All pre-med students can vividly remember their first time observing in an OR. If you're interning in a hospital abroad, you will most likely have the opportunity to stand right next to the surgeon and scrutinize his every move. While "Operating Room" sounds understandably daunting, there is so much that goes on behind the scenes- from fainting, to gagging, and finally, giggling. These are a few thoughts every pre-med student has while observing in the OR.
1. There's no way I'm going to faint
No one wants to admit to their vulnerabilities and weaknesses, so naturally we all enter the operating room telling ourselves "I got this." Even with the surgeons' multiple warnings about fainting, we are adamant millennials who would be crazy for believing that we are anything apart from invincible.
2. Just kidding, I'm totally about to faint
About five to ten minutes into the surgery, we realize that our invincibility does not extend to the operating room. We start to feel a bit dizzy and a tinge queasy, and when blood starts profusely leaking from the patient's body, BOOM. We black out.
3. Did I just faint?
I'm afraid so. Now slap your face just a bit, drink some water, and get your head back in the game.
4. Does the surgeon really need this many drills?
While observing a total hip replacement surgery, I was astounded by the number of drills laid out on the table. The sound of these instruments will live in my ears for years.
5. Is the patient supposed to be losing this much blood?
I will never forget the moment I saw the placenta taken out of a mother's body during a C-section. A waterfall of blood immediately followed.
6. Are the surgeons really making jokes right now?
Surprisingly, surgeons know how to have fun in the OR. They crack jokes left and right while someone is laying under them with a cut-open body. At a certain point, I had to ask, "shouldn't we be paying attention to the patient?" If you are about to be operated on, don't worry though, because surgeons are extremely brilliant. If they weren't, they wouldn't be able to joke around and have somebody's life in their hands at the same time.
7. How do I block the smell of cauterization?
For anyone who has observed in an OR, the smell of electrocautery makes you want to vomit. Imagine burning flesh...the smell doesn't seem too pleasant, does it? You know the anesthesiologist has done a good job when the patient doesn't wake up from that atrocious smell.
8. Oops, my scrub pants are falling off. Should I break sterilization codes and pull them back up?
Being a tiny person in a hospital that has no XS scrub pants naturally means that I will be sporting the whole "sagging" look. One time, my drawstring became loose and I was nearly doing a split so that my scrubs wouldn't hit the floor. Needless to say, that was an awkward moment for everyone in the OR.
9. Shoot, I really have to pee
Surgeries can last a long time, but bladders can't. After standing for three or more hours straight, our bladder is telling us to run out of the OR and find the nearest bathroom, but most times we find it too awkward to walk out in the middle of a surgery.
10. Can I sit down for a few minutes?
After a certain point in the surgery, our knees feel locked and all we desire is a brief moment of rest. If there is an empty stool in the OR, there is a 100 percent chance I will be sitting on it for at least two minutes.
11. Wow, I actually survived this surgery. I must be Derek Shepherd.
Yes, I made it through. I am brilliant. I am a genius. I am Derek Shepherd.
And with that, all I can say is #It'sABeautifulDayToSaveLives
