The Skin and It's Contents

So I started a blog. In 2 weeks Bekah, Grace, and I are going to Bangladesh. I'm going to work at Memorial Christian Hospital in the extreme southeast part of the country. Hopefully, this blog will keep anyone who is interested updated on what we are doing. I'm sure I will be doing some incredible cases and working very hard. Bekah and Grace will be busy, too, but at this point we're unsure about the specifics of what they'll be doing. We're taking 150 lbs. of surgical supplies that I've managed to beg, barrow, and steal. Well, beg and barrow anyway.

The title of this blog is a reference to a saying used by a few old time general surgeons. They say that they limit their practice to the skin and it's contents, meaning there is nothing that they can't (or won't) operate on. Memorial Christian Hospital is an 80 bed hospital that serves a population of 10 million people in the southeast portion of Bangladesh. It is staffed by 3 MD's only one of whom is a surgeon, Dr. Steve Kelley. He is a general surgeon in the fullest sense.

Some of the things we're bringing include

• Intramedullary nails - to fix long bone fractures
• A 30 degree cystoscope for urologic procedures
• Suture for C-sections
• Laparoscopic equipment
• Hernia mesh
• Assorted car parts
• Coffee

It's going to be fun.