Several other surgeries were performed today – all went well, some took longer than expected as they were complex cases but the outcomes were fantastic. Below is Dr. Jeff DeWeese (surgeon) and Dr. Michael  Johnston (anesthesiologist) can be seen at work:

While the surgery was going on we still had more patients arriving which meant that everyone had to be flexible so we could access and review every case. This meant a very late lunch break for the surgeons who had to balance surgery time with clinic time!

With surgeries underway the post-op team leapt into action – this was headed up by Lead PACU nurse Merewyn Dixon-Beckett and capably supported by Dennis Kneeppel.

A Rotaplast tradition is to have Rotary Clubs donate blankets which are made by Wrap-a-Smile. These blankets are handmade and are beautiful. The picture above and below show the blankets in use in the PACU and the blankets stay with the patients throughout their stay.

On our first day, we fortuitously met up with Lisa Travis, an American living in Liberia, she was so impressed with what Rotaplast was doing she wanted to help. Lisa was able to get Tom, me and Franklin and George from the local Rotaract club on to two radio stations – Joy FM and Truth FM. You can see the team in the studio at Joy FM below and you can see a video of our section of the Truth FM morning show via this link Radio Show. 

This media coverage was incredibly successful with a big uptick in clinic attendees after the show with the majority saying they heard about the Rotaplast mission and free surgeries via the radio.

With internet challenges, it is getting late so day 4 blog will have to wait until tomorrow!

Bye for now

Mark