Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
HALEY AGEE, 15, front, and Madison Sterbenz, center with pumpkin, 16, both of the Ironwood Area School District perform a "pumpkinectomy" on Friday morning at the Lindquist Student Center at Gogebic Community College in Ironwood. Assisting them with the procedure, clockwise, are Aryonna Ozzello, far left, 16, of Bessemer Area Schools, Lauren Heikkila,16, of Wakefield-Marenisco School, Katie Sterbenz, surgical technician at Aspirus Grand View Surgical Center in Ironwood, and Lexi Holm, 16, far right, of Ironwood Area Schools.
By CHARITY SMITH
Ironwood - Five pumpkins underwent a "pumkinectomy" and came out smiling Jack-o'-lanterns early Friday morning at Gogebic Community College.
The patients in question all went by the alias "Candy Corn," and entrusted their winter squash wellbeing to "Dr. Frankenstein." The medical procedure was conducted at the Lindquist Student Center and at the courtesy of CNA program students from the Gogebic Ontonagon Intermediate School District.
"I think it's pretty fun," said Katie Sterbenz, a surgical technician at Aspirus Grand View in Ironwood, who assisted the class. "I wish I had this as a CNA. It's pretty cool."
The pumkinectomy procedure involved a "lysis of adhesions with the removal of seeds to alleviate the source of chronic pain." The procedures followed a field trip to the Aspirus Grand View Surgical Center in Ironwood last week, and allowed the students to safely practice using the personal protective equipment procedures they have learned, along with medical terminology.
There are many abbreviations of the profession that students need to learn in the classroom to more quickly interpret physician orders, admission orders and things like informed consent, said Amanda Sprague, CNA program instructor for the GOISD. This event helps put those abbreviations to practice.
"I think it's a great way to bring real life experience to the students, I mean they got to visit the O.R. (operating room) and now they are able to apply some of those skills," said Ashley Nevins, career and technical programs director for the GOISD who watched the surgeries. "It's a fun activity, but they're following some of the proper procedures that a surge tech would have to. It's fun and it's a great way they can apply their skills to a real life project or experience."
The students, "scrubbed in" and assisted each other with putting on their PPE, just as if it was an actual surgical procedure. The 19 students were divided into small teams and took on the roles of circulator, surgeon, CRNA and surgical technician for one of the five pumpkin patients.
The students read an informed consent request to their pumpkin patients and noted the start and end time of the procedure. Halloween music was playing as the surgeons performed the procedures.
Sterbenz said the students learned how to put on gowns, gloves and do a surgical scrub to be sterile for surgery. The students did very well with understanding how to use PPE and the protocol, she said.
"I thought it was a lot of fun," said Haley Agee, 15, of Ironwood Area Schools. "I think it was really cool that we were able to do it and then learn especially from a surgical technician like herself (Sterbenz). We got to learn how to properly scrub. How to do the procedures and I thought It was really cool."
"I thought the project was very fun and it was a good experience for all of us to get to learn," said Lauren Heikkila, 16, of the Wakefield-Marenisco School District.
Aryonna Ozzello. 16, of the Bessemer Area School District, echoed Heikkila's sentiment adding that she thought it brought them closer as a group.
The Jack-o'-lanterns went home with the students to grace their homes for Halloween.
