I would like to express my sincere appreciation for AAOS and
Arthroscopy Association of North America (AANA) for giving me this opportunity.
I have no words to express how happy I am to have received this scholarship. My
appreciation also extends to Dr. Richard Gayle for supporting this scholarship. I
spent time with Dr. Gayle and his wonderful family (Shanti, Zahra and Suliya)
and couldn’t help but notice how big a heart he has that enjoys giving. I found
out that he travelled to East African Countries (Uganda and Kenya) and saw the
condition of health service in the region and is trying to help bring change to
the area in his own way.
During
my observership week in Palo Alto Medical Foundation I shadowed Dr. Richard
Gayle in clinic (office) and the operating theaters. He has a busy practice
which gave me plenty of opportunity to see lots of patients. I learned from his
approach to patients and clinical exams to reach at a specific diagnosis. I
also saw lots of knee and shoulder MRIs with variety of pathology which
broadened my view. He was well aware of my level of expertise in arthroscopic
surgery and was kind enough to teach me the best way he could. He also arranged
for me a cadaveric laboratory arthroscopy work with Pacific Medical Inc. in
Tracy, California. It was a great facility and they have a huge area dedicated
to teaching arthroscopic techniques to residents. I was amazed to see how far
the private companies go to help with the teaching. I had a great afternoon
there, my first cadaveric scope. I went step by step with arthroscopic
evaluation of the knee to all-inside ACL reconstruction with the help of Dr.
Richard Gayle and Scott. I am very thankful to Scott and Pacific Medical Inc.
too.
I then
went to the cold and windy Chicago to attend the AANA Master Experience,
Advances in Knee Surgery: Cartilage Focus, held from Nov. 21-23, 2014. It was a
great experience to learn from the leading scientists in this field. The
presentations were amazing. They were all teaching most updated information on
the issues and they were very enlightening. The discussions that occurred after
each teaching and case presentations were stimulating. I liked the way they
were presented and discussed. The practical sessions were very interesting. We
were given any equipment that we asked and we (with my lab partner Peter Choi
from South Korea) managed to do all the practical exercises that were planned
for the weekend and more. We had excellent tutors in the lab who helped us with
the cases and also helped answer all the questions we had.
The
last day of my visit was a visit to North Shore University, Evanston Hospital.
I met Dr. Howard Sweeney and spent a very helpful day with him. Dr. Sweeney
kindly took me through the basics of arthroscopy, navigating the knee,
arthroscopic knot tying and meniscus repairs. He also showed me how to use
anchors as in Bankart repair. I also spent a good amount of time perfecting my
skills working on knee model and simulators.
In
general, this scholarship has been very useful for me. I have increased my
knowledge on various disease conditions related to sport and ageing. I also
have improved my knee arthroscopy skills. The various conditions I have seen
during my stay are also very prevalent in my country and I believe I will be of
good help for my residents and also patients. I also have a plan to do sports
medicine fellowship soon and this trip has helped me to clear my thoughts on
the subject. I would like to reassure AAOS, AANA and Dr. Richard Gayle that
this scholarship has been a success and that it is money well spent.
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