AT AN OPERATION.

Hokitika Guardian, 11 February 1922, Page 1

AT AN OPERATION.

(By Paul Bewshor in “Daily Mail.”) I stood at the edge of a gallery overlooking a hot, brilliantly lighted room, with white-tiled walls. It was altruist full of people wearing white caps and aprons, Hvho moved busily round'a covered figure on, the operating table. “Just finished. Amputation. Casualty, lacerated foot” explained my friend. I was glad that it was just finished. Rapidly splints were jrut on the leg. Rapidly the patient, a young man, was transferred to a. wheeled stretcher, and before ho was out of the room the, next case was wheeled in. “Woman. Foreign body in knee,” said my mentor. Tho woman, who had been anaesthetised in the next room .was lifted on to the operating table. Her leg was hared. The surgeon called for a tourniquet. Rapidly, before 1 had noticed it, a brown rubber hand, like the inner tube of a bicycle tyre, had been fixed round her leg above the knee. The case was ready. b a * * » The white room which was flooded with brilliant white light thrown downwards from powerful electric lamps, seemed curiously full of the white aproned figures. I counted no fewer than twenty-two of them, including three nurses. They were like a swarm of bees in n beehive. Their activity seemed aimless until one watched what one particular unit was doing. To and fro they moved about the table, their faces, made almost expressionless by the white mask's across their mouths; and in the hot room there was scarcely and sound save the occasional shuffle of feet. No one seemed to speak. Everyone knew what to do. ’Suddenly the surgeon, who wore big white shoes, like, those of an Arctic explorer, and one whose hands were grey rubber gloves, said: “AVill someone re. piind me of the history of this case?” AVhen he had learnt if he gave n short lecture to the assembled group of ghostly ,figures, many of whom were students, and the operation began. * * * * *

The surgeon examined the knee, felt it, and taking a, small scapel in his hand, made a. hold, slightly curving incision some sor 6 inches long. He rapidly deepened the incision till the dark red of the muscle and 1 -the white of tho hone could be seen. I felt singularly unaffected—perhaps I was too interesed.

Towels were now clipped completely , round the incision with some 10 to 15 of the soissor-like clips, which were thrown' hack to hold open the wound, , from which they radiated like the spokes of a wheel. The surgeon began to search for the foreign body. AA T ith his finger in the knee he felt here and there, a thoughtful expression on his face. He found what fie wanted. The attendant figures bent over to see it in its position. AVih a, spoon-like instrument the surgeon carefully removed it. It, was a, small white triangular substance. “I’ve never seen a case like this before,” said the surgeon. “I’ve never heard of such al case. It’s ai stone. Tt must have got into the knee when she was kneeling.” Meanwhile, immediately below me, the anaesthetist attended busily, as he had done all through the operation, to the one thing which mattered to him—the head of the woman. From, a bottle he shook out the ether, whose heavy scent was filling the hot room, on to the mask which covered her face. Now and again ho raised her eve-lid. One felt that for the surgeon the operating table held only a knee and for the; anaesthetist only a head. Quickly Hie surgeon put a stitch inside the knee. Quickly he began to stitch up the incision. So beautifully did he do his “tailoring” which gave me a far greater qualm thnm all his cutting, that only a fine line showed where the gaping wound had been. Hia dresser put in the last stitches. The knee was washed. The operation was oxer.