This morning made up for all of the pointless sitting I did yesterday morning...because I got to watch a C-section! We didn't get to help at all (obviously. Neither one of us are qualified for that) but we were able to see everything. It was also the first time I've ever been able to watch a surgery, so I was quite excited and it was very cool for me. After the mom-to-be had her catheter and IV in and was placed on the operating table, a long spinal needle was inserted into her spine and she was given an injection. The person giving it said it was not an epidural when we asked. The woman was rolled back over and draped properly with sterilized towels so that only a space on her lower abdomen was showing. One of the surgeons sliced across with a scalpel but the woman started making noise and her heartbeat sped up so they waited while anesthesia was given through a mask before continuing. After the initial slice, the surgeons got scissors out to cut through the membrane then got scalpels involved again to get through the womb. There was some digging involved but finally out came this wrinkly lavender thing that gave a small cry. The umbilical cord was cut and the baby was taken to a side table to be cleaned and tended to. The surgeons then sutured up the uterus and shoved it back in, brought the lining back together and sutured that, then sutured another layer before sewing the skin up. Embarrassingly, I didn't see the skin get sutured because I felt my vision going dark and had to walk out for a bit of air. No puking and no fainting luckily. I came back in though in time to see the bandages put on and the catheter taken out.
The surgery was not very long at all; I'd say the baby was out in 20 minutes or so then the rest was just closing up. The whole thing maybe took an hour at most.
The rest of the morning/early afternoon ended up like yesterday. The doctor doesn't teach at all. She sees her patients and we wait in the waiting room. It would be a much more enriching experience if we could come in too and if she would translate a summary of what is wrong then tell us what she is going to do about it and why. I CAN see where that would be mildly annoying to her. But in my opinion, if she is partnered with a volunteer health program, then she needs to actually be a part of the program by teaching the volunteers and letting them be a part of things.
The other health volunteers here warned me that gynecology was a lot of boring waiting. I'm hoping that next week I will move to a different place like they did and be able to experience more in other fields.
In other blog worthy news, I navigated my way home by myself today. And simultaneously found out a girl in the health placement doesnt like me. The first clue was her obvious lack of interest in talking to me yesterday when we were waiting. But today topped it off. When we got to the office, she sat down first so I sat down next to her. Then she gets up, walks outside, walks back in, and sits across the office. I jokingly say "what, you dont like me anymore?" then she just responds with "I wanted to sit here." The rest of the time, she didnt talk to me at all. After we watched the C-section, we were waiting in the waiting room again, sitting on opposite sides, when she all of a sudden walks out. I assumed she had gone for a walk, but realized after 40 minutes that she went home. So I left the office and caught a tuk-tuk, who dropped me off at a bus stop and told me the bus was coming and would take me there. I was like um, not taking the bus. So I attempted to hail about 6 tuk-tuks who all wanted 100-200 rupees to take me back to the house-which is ridiculous. I finally found one willing to charge 50 rupees, so I took it and made it back. The girl who has the issue with me was just sitting at home, pretty as you please, like nothing was up. When voicing my concern to another volunteer that she seemed very grumpy with my lately, the volunteer said that she told the group who went to Amritsar that she didnt like me and she wasnt happy with her trip here at all. Apparently she told them I was too annoying. I am just going to ignore it. I'm hoping that as long as we keep a polite distance from each other, she wont explode in my face or ruin the next 2 weeks for me. She will be gone soon anyways. Its just weird for me though since I have no issue with her and nothing has happened between us at all. I generally get along with everyone, and most people at least are neutral with me if they dont necessarily really like me or want to be friends. But oh well.
Much love,
Alyssa
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