Poking stuff

I'm surprised how different theatre etiquette feels in gynae. Perhaps this is because, unfamiliar with the new environment, I find myself a little on edge. I'm not sure.

Thankfully, Roddy is one of those characters who seems to understand the paucity of training opportunities these days, and seems willing to let me try my hand: tentatively.

First up, the 'lap' steri in the woman so morbidly obese that the allowed insufflation pressures are not enough to move her anterior abdominal wall out of the way of her bowel. He struggles for a while before calling the shot and moving over to a mini laparotomy. I'm not sure why, but the gynae people use a transverse abdominal incision - and when I think about it, Mr R-S has advocated exactly the same thing to me, saying it led to full access of the abdomen. I wfeel the need to find out about the different access techniques.

I get to do my first cystoscopy; and shamefully for such a keen photographer, I'm baffled by the wide angle on the scope, never quite getting a full view. Sigh.

The hysteroscopy and mirena insertion throws up only an interesting point about the diagnosis of DUB; which I realise I'm going to have to find out about.

Final thing, get to see some vault repairs and a vag-hyst; amazing stuff, that validates the old joke about the car mechanic.

Not quite as fast as general surgery, I would say, but more than confirms my feeling that I need to prosect for a few months to get a handle on things.

And not to get fat, of course.