Yesterday was a “research day” for the surgery department, so most of the elective surgeries didn’t start till around 1:30 PM. In the meantime, the anesthesia providers were scrambling all over the hospital throughout the morning and managed to stay organized with all the scheduled afternoon cases plus add-on cases.
I went from interventional radiology, the main operating room, the outpatient center, and ultimately the NICU performing various anesthetics and giving breaks to my colleagues. Throughout the day, I learned about the site-dependent aspects of performing safe anesthetics in critically ill patients.
Now, finally with a day off, how do I spend it? Renewing my BLS and ACLS certifications, of course! $175 for the American Heart Association to recognize that I can indeed follow protocol-driven resuscitation. Oh well, we all have to do it and it’s undoubtedly a skill that all healthcare providers (I’d argue everyone) should be familiar with.
Here’s a hint: when in doubt, do “high quality” chest compressions. Bam! 😀
