We’ve travelled back and forth between Australia and New Zealand for the last six weeks and although the ports now all start to look the same the novelty still hasn’t worn off.
After spending over four months on the ship I am starting to compare it to working in hospital whilst living in hospital residence. It’s very difficult to detach social life from work when the two co-exist side by side onboard the ship.
Today though we are in Akaroa. A beautiful little tender port in the South Island of NZ. I am currently typing this blog onboard top deck under hot sunshine with an ice cold mohito by my side. This nice, relaxing day is a far cry from what we experienced when we were last here two weeks ago. Here is my story...
After spending the day out with Darian checking out the little shops and taking in the scenery, we returned to the ship so I could start my afternoon clinic at 4:30pm. Departure from Akaroa was scheduled at 5pm.
At 4:25 a CODE ALPHA was tanoyed to indicate a medical emergency in the Atrium. The whole team arrived at the scene to find a 70 year old lady collapsed on her chair, only rousable to a pain stimulus and looking very unwell indeed.
While the team got to work administering oxygen and establishing an IV line, I spoke briefly to her friend about what happened.
“Well, we just decided to sit down for coffee after watching one of the shows. Mary suddenly said she had a pain in her stomach and within a few seconds she started frothing at the mouth and going blue in the face. That’s when I called the nurse. I don’t get it?! She has been fine all day!!!”
We rushed Mary down to the medical centre where we could assess her more thoroughly. En route she became a lot more alert and the colour started to return to her face.
When we attached her to monitoring equipment her blood pressure was 72/36 (very low). She looked and felt fine for five minutes before screaming out with another bout of stomach pain. Again she became very pale and mottled. Strongly suspicious of a Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (100% Death if not operated on), we titrated IV fluids in very slowly to keep the blood pressure low and started a noradrenaline infusion.
Suddenly the Captain’s Voice came in over the tannoy “Good Evening Ladies & Gentleman we are now ready to depart Akaroa and set sail for Wellington...”
Carol quickly finds to the nearest phone to inform the Captain we need to delay ship departure so Mary can be urgently disembarked to hospital.
As Akaroa is a Tender Port we have to go through the arduous task of transferring Mary ashore in a very small, unsteady tender boat.
30 minutes later we are finally ashore and a helicopter is waiting to transfer our patient to Christchurch Hospital.
Whilst eating in the officer’s mess I get a phone call at 9pm from an outside line.
“Hello, this is the Intensive Care Consultant at Christchurch Hospital. Just thought I’d give you an update as to what’s happening with your patient."
"Turned out Mary had a ruptured AAA after all. She was operated on at 7pm. They found 2L of blood in her abdomen. She’s stable at the moment. We’re hoping to wean her off the ventilator tomorrow.”
I phone up three days later.
“Hi this is Ryan from the Dawn Princess, I’m just wandering how Mary’s doing?”
“Well. Do you want to ask her yourself? MARY!”
I’m in a state of shock when Mary answers the phone, sounding perfectly fine. She says she’ll be out of hospital in a week!!!
Incredible to think how if she had presented only five minutes later when we had set sail the outcome could have been very different!!!
This will probably be one of the most memorable experiences from my first contract at sea. Needless to say Christmas was very special when we received her Christmas Card thanking us all for our efforts.
Little Victories like this remind me how much I enjoy being a doctor.
