Last Wednesday, 30 Bio 2 and AP Biology students had the opportunity to watch a quadruple bypass heart surgery. The Museum of Science and Industry’s “Live From the Heart” program gives students the opportunity to “Go live into the operating room and watch via video conference as a surgical team performs heart surgery. Talk to the team, learn about heart health and find out about medical careers” (Griffin Museum of Science and Industry).
The patient was a 67 year old female. She had diabetes, kidney disease, and COPD due to cigarette usage. Due to all of these health issues, there were 4 different blockages in her heart. The surgery was performed by Dr. Chadrick Cross, cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon at Advocate Christ Medical Center. The Physicians Assistant, Shannon Rosenbrock, extracted the saphenous vein in the inside of the leg, which would be used as a “detour” around the blockage in the heart. Dr. Cross extracted the mammary artery from the chest. The anesthesiologist in the OR was Dr. Caitlyn Gottwald. Her job is to safely put the patient under anesthesia, manage her vital organs, and her pain levels before, during, and after surgery. During bypass surgery, the surgical team stops the patient’s heart so that they can focus on precision without the heart moving. When this happens, the profusionist, Mike, runs the bypass machine. He cools the blood, and it flows through the body, without pumping the heart! Paula and Maria were the scrub nurses in this surgery. Their jobs are to make sure everything is sterile to prevent infection, assist the surgeons by getting them the utensils needed, and keeping the operating room safe for everyone inside.
Baileigh Hammelman said that her favorite part of the virtual field trip was watching Shannon extract the saphenous vein from the patient’s leg. “It wasn’t even part of the heart but it was so cool”. Most of the students in the room enjoyed the operation very much. The field trip gives students the opportunity to learn about surgical procedures, techniques, career options, and a real, deep look into the human body.
