THE NINTH DAY

Today is Wednesday, July 3, 2024. It is my ninth day at Revathi Medical Center in Tamilnadu, India.

Today I will be in dialysis. Dialysis is where they extract and purify blood. The first thing I did was examine a patient’s charts and case files.

The nurses marked the patient’s state of consciousness, which was continuously conscious and oriented during the day. They also checked the stability of the patient’s vitals which were always stable according to her charts. Her blood pressure was always around 184-144. They gave her general medicine, and they also gave her prescribed medications. They noted that she had no allergic reactions to her medication. They also marked that they finished and disconnected methylprednisolone, which is a medicine that works on the immune system to reduce swelling, redness, itching, and allergic reactions. They also marked that the patient had no complaints overall. According to the patient’s files, she is a 63-year-old female diagnosed with leg cellulitis.

Aside from this, I learned how to use the dialysis machine. First, the dialysis machine is used by inserting tubing into a jugular vein. A jugular vein is a vein located in the neck and plays a crucial role in the circulatory system. The blood comes out of the body through the arteries, and then goes through two cycles in the dialysis machine before heading to the artery chamber. The blood goes through the artery chamber and into the dialysis tube where the blood diffuses. Then, the blood travels back through the venules. Venules are small blood vessels that connect your capillaries with your veins throughout your body. But, the blood is stopped along the way to block unwanted air. The reason for blocked unwanted air is that the blood is heading straight to the heart. If the air gets in through the blood it could result in the patient going into cardiac arrest.