The surgery schedule was overbooked today and not by choice. Dr Spendey gave us the go ahead to do the amputation on the man with the completely avascular, foul smelling foot. The elective cases included hardware removal, clubfoot surgery, wound vac changes/debridements, removal of a wrist mass and extensive quadricepsplasty. Ed and I with the whole team working aggressively were able to get all of the cases done by late in the evening. Unfortunately, at 5 pm the powerhouse people notified us that they would be turning off the power immediately. No amount of reason prevailed. In spite of Madame Clotaire being notified of the situation, the power went off. The cases that had already been prepared for me proceeded. By the time I finished, my scrubs were totally soaked with sweat. I hope and pray that the wound will not get infected. The power returned after the case was over. Fortunately, it stayed on for the quadricepsplasty which took over two hours. Another 15 hour work day left all of us ready to get some well deserved rest.
May 6
It turned into a light day today. Ed started in the OR with a couple of smaller cases while I did the clinic. Our big cases cancelled. It was a real disappointment for both Ed and me. It was the bilateral Blounts for TSFs. We were both looking forward to that case as the highlight of the week because of Ed's special interest in external fixators. The patient decided to wait until next month so she wouldn't have to miss any school. I hope Ed can come back and do the case with me then.
Ed has really caught the vision of what is happening here at HAH and what the future can hold especially if we can effectively establish strong networks and partnerships. He told me of an exciting idea. He is good friends with Dr David Moorhead who is involved in a high leadership position at Florida Hospital. They have a children's hospital together with Disney and are intent on attracting patients from around the world. The advanced orthopedics that is done here especially with children is an area that could be very beneficial for their program. He is planning to approach Dr Moorhead with the idea of a relationship that could be mutually beneficial. Having a sister institution with the Disney name attached could be very helpful for HAH. He is planning to invite Dr Moorhead to join him here at HAH for a site visit. What is being done here on an everyday basis has to be seen to be believed.
I also had a chance encounter with Dr Archer in the hall yesterday. He asked about the coffee table book and if he could still make a contribution. I told him I was sorry but that the book had just gone to the printer and it was too late by a couple of days. Since he is quite politically connected, it occurred to me to ask if he had any relationship with the president elect. He said that he does and would be meeting with Mr Martelly that very evening. I asked if there was any chance that he might be able to inform Mr Martelly of the remarkable things that are being done here at HAH. His awareness of the excellent work being done here could help especially if he could give our fundraising efforts more exposure especially in the national media in the US. Dr Archer said he would talk to the president about that. It would be wonderful if the book could get exposure on a program like Oprah. I can only dream. I asked Tim to send me some proofs as well as the electronic version of the book so that we can use them to show anyone interested the high quality of the product.
May 7
The e-version of the coffee table book came early this morning. I downloaded all four large files and looked at the first few. It is outstanding. I am sure it will be a big hit. The layout and the images are really professional.
Ed and I needed to take the patient with the open tibial fracture back to the OR for a vac change. We decided to skin graft the fairly large granulated area. There is still bone exposed and left us with a challenge of how to get it covered. Dr Pat Yoon will be able to help us deal with that problem. He arrived today with his team from Minnesota. He is a trauma orthopedist and has been here twice before. We will take the patient back to the OR on Monday and reassess his status.
I spent a couple of hours after lunch today with a new acquaintance. His name is Scott Thurmon. He is an Adventist businessman who has recently had some major life threatening medical problems. He has reassessed his priorities and now is putting his energies into a nonprofit that is directed to help Haitians. His plan is to start an agricultural program as well as culinary institute in the Les Cayes area. He also wants to have a medical facility of some type. He apparently has a lot of resources backing his ideas. I showed him the electronic version of the coffee table book and he really liked it.
For more information on the book, please visit the webpage.
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