Books

Well, it has been a while since I reviewed any books on here, so I thought today would be a good time to update you. Recently I read two books. (Well, okay, I read MORE than two books, but I am going to review two of them!)



The first book is called "The Maze Runner." I initially started to read this one very first because it looked interesting, but I finished it last. I started reading the other books I had instead.

If that tells you anything, then you shouldn't be surprised to find out that I did not like this book all that much. I kept trying to like it. It just...it was rather boring to be right honest with you. I kept thinking, it has to get better and be really interesting. All the key ingredients were there to make it a very good book, but...it just didn't get there.

I kind of liked how my husband described it...it's like you're reading thinking, it has to start moving soon! but it never does... The first 150 pages is about the main character being disoriented and confused and no one telling him what is going on, and that he'll figure it out, but he can't figure it out because he's confused...yeah, it is a nice vicious cycle that grows very old after the third chapter.

It actually is going to have a sequel, but I can't say that I'm even curious to read the second one.

I can't even recommend it. It was that boring.



The second book I decided to review is called "Poison Study." This book, was VERY good. The only negative thing I thought about this book is that there is a little bit of swearing in it...but not very much. I'm picky about the books I read, and if they have too much language in them, I'll just put them down and not finish the book.

Anyway, this book I would say is more in the fantasy genre. It's set in an area where there used to be nobility, but the king was overtaken by a military general. The general has food tasters to test his food for poison, and the story is about a girl that becomes a food taster for the general.

I don't want to give too much away, but I thought this book was just good. I enjoyed reading it, it flowed well, the characters were described well, and I would probably read it again.

I give it 4 pens. :) It too has a sequel, and that one I REALLY want to read!

Curtains

On Saturday we went to the last play on our season ticket for Hale Center Theatre. It was a play that has just come off of broadway called "Curtains." It was really funny!

It is a murder mystery musical (try saying that five times fast!). Anyway, it is about a theatre group who are putting on a musical and their lead actress gets killed on stage at the end of a performance.

An inspector comes to solve the mystery, and starts helping them fix the play they are trying to perform.



It was really enjoyable, and the scoffs coming from my husband during the super cheesy parts was funny too.

All in all, a fun play to see!

What I do...

So, after reading a comment from my friend, I realized that a lot of people don't really know what a surgical tech does. So, I decided I would try to explain it...in a short version. The long version takes a textbook or two. :)

A surgical tech is a part of the surgical team and helps set up the operating room before a patient is ever brought in. Once the operating room has been cleaned, the case instruments and supplies are brought into the room and opened. There is a specific way you can do this and have all the items stay "sterile." It's called aseptic technique, and once these supplies have been open, a sterile field has been created.

Once the supplies are opened, the scrub (which is another term for a surgical tech, I guess you could say it's the slang word for surgical tech) goes out and scrubs in. This means that they disinfect their hands and arms up to the elbow, go back into the room and put on a gown and sterile gloves. Once this is accomplished, the scrub is considered a part of the sterile field.

The scrub then starts to set up and arrange all the sterile surgical supplies that will be needed for the case. This picture is an example of that, except the scrub in this picture is purposely facing the camera. In a normal OR the scrub is facing the wall, because the back table (where all the supplies are) is by the back of the OR.



Here is a picture of a back table being used during surgery...(which is called a back table because it starts out in the "back" of the room...hehehe...seriously though, that's why it's called a back table...)


When the surgeon has scrubbed and comes in the room, the scrub gowns and gloves the surgeon, and then starts to assist the surgeon. The surgical site is draped off, the back table is moved to be more accessible, and an experienced scrub should know exactly what the surgeon needs and when they need it, and passes the supplies and instruments to the surgeon.

Depending on the case, there might be two surgeons, two scrubs, etc... but at the bare minimum there will be a scrub, and the surgeon that are scrubbed in. There are other members of the surgical team that aren't scrubbed in. A nurse (called a circulator) and anesthesia. Keep in mind this is just a basic description.

Here is a picture of a surgical team scrubbed in. There are two surgeons (they are on opposite sides of the patient, and furthest away from the camera) and two scrubs. (one of them may be a first assistant. A first assistant is someone who is a surgical tech who has specialized their training and usually has a job with one or two surgeons, and that's ALL they do, is work for those surgeons. If there is a first assistant they are the one that usually asks for things from the scrub. Anyway...confused yet? :)



When the case is over the scrub cleans up all the instruments and supplies, undrapes the patient, assists the nurse with moving the patient, and then starts to clean up and disinfect the OR in preparation for the next surgery, if there is one. And then it starts all over again... :)

So, in a nutshell that is what I do, and for the most part it is a job that I really enjoy doing.