Week 4- The Week of New Experiences

This week we had our last pharmacology class. During class we discussed a checklist that evaluates the quality of a trial and the data collected. We applied this method to a published article and discussed the ways the trial did and did not fit meet the criteria. On Tuesday we went to the teaching hospital in Bonn, specifically we went to the Chirurgisches Zentrum. Elyssa and I got to shadow Dr. Achilles Delis. He is an anesthesiologist and was such an amazing teacher. He asked us questions about anatomy, pharmacology, and a sundry of other things and it was such a neat experience because he actually wanted us to learn and I could tell he was excited to teach us. We got to watch a 4-hour coronary artery bypass surgery. I had seen interventions before but full on surgery was new to me and it was amazing. The smell of cautery was a little nauseating in the beginning but it was fine a little ways into the surgery. We also got to follow the patient to the ICU where the doctors talked about the patient and sort of handed the patient off to the ICU doctor. Then we got to eat a meal with Dr. Delis where he told us about why he chose anesthesiology and that the only place he had visited in Texas was Texarkana which was sort of funny. We then got a tour of the emergency room and he told us about the CT scanner and other machines they have in the hospital. Overall, it was definitely a once in a lifetime experience and I was in absolute amazement the whole time. And I think I definitely lucked out getting to shadow a really cool doctor. 

On Wednesday we went to Cologne again. This time I went to the Cologne Zoo. We got a tour from a tour guide and got to see the elephant enclosure and talk to their handlers. They told us how they have zero direct contact with the animals. The veterinarians are the only have contact with the animals. We also saw gorillas, monkeys, giraffes, prairie dogs, and other zoo animals. After our excursion a group of us stayed in Cologne and looked around the city for a while which was quite fun. 

Elephant enclosure 

Thursday was all about anesthesia. We went to the Horst-Stoeckel anesthesia museum that was split up by ‘eras’ of modern anesthesia which began in 1846. We learned about all of the different techniques of anesthesia. Before they discovered intravenous or inhalation anesthetics they made patients drink alcohol or used opium as analgesics. In the museum there were examples of anesthesia from all of the different time periods. There was also an iron lung machine and a set-up of an operating room from the 1930s. 

One of the older anesthesia machines

In lecture during the week we learned about this history of anesthesia, Nazi euthanasia programs, Nuremberg Trails, contemplative practice, and the Venus figurines. In the Nazi euthanasia programs, we talk about eugenics which is an extrapolation of social Darwinism that states there is a ‘good race’. We also discussed that the Nazi’s conducted experiments on humans that could never be repeated due to ethical issues and the fact that it is just purely wicked. But we did discuss the ethics surrounding the use of the data they collected in order to improve human life. It was a very interesting ethical discussion. 

Over the weekend I went to Interlaken, Switzerland. And to say that it was beautiful would be an understatement. It was the bluest water I have ever seen and the mountain surrounding the two lakes were so magnificent. 

Lake Brienz

When we arrived (after having some minor train issues of having to taxi to a new station after a ‘track emergency’) we went to the hostel and then got ready to go parasailing. I was scared to go parasailing because it is sort of like skydiving but without the freefall and also give the fact that I had never done something like this. We went to get our hiking boots they gave us on and rode in the van up the mountain to our ‘jump point’. The driver of the van was whipping the van around the curves on the mountain which was a little shocking but it was fun too. Then we got suited into our harnesses and mine was not tight at all. I asked my guide if it was okay and he jokingly said “yeah it should be” which did not make me feel any better. We strapped into the parasail and it took us 3 times to catch the wind correctly to get up into the air but when we do it was so breathtaking and astounding. The views were absolutely spectacular. We also did some ‘tricks’ in the air which were very fun!! 

360 degree video of me flying like a bird!

On Saturday we watched the World Cup match that was on at the hostel and had great fondue. On Sunday we did a 2.5 hour hike up the mountain to a place called Harder Klum which is a lookout on top of a mountain. 

Our hiking crew 

The hike was definitely worth it for the views. After our hike we ate some very delicious chocolate covered strawberries. Overall, Interlaken was such a nice refresher and the pure beauty of Interlaken was captivating and magical.