I arrived in Chicago on a mildly windy Thursday
afternoon after a long trip from Nigeria. The next morning saw me at the
Orthopedic Learning Center and I quickly moved onto what turned out to be an
extremely awesome educational experience.
The open and arthroscopic shoulder
workshop kicked off with lectures delivered by many top notch surgeons. The
discussions and debates were occasionally out of my realm but I enjoyed all of
it. After the lectures came the cadaveric lab which drove home the points
learnt from the lectures. The lab sessions were really helpful particularly for
me coming from Nigeria where cadaveric labs are non-existent.
I spent Sunday travelling to Boston to
join Dr. Mattingly at the New England Baptist Hospital. I was welcomed by Debby
DiMartino whom I must say made me extremely welcome and made sure I had no
problems fitting in. I was quickly guided into the operating room by Dr.
Mattingly who introduced me to the rest of the department. Everyone was eager
to show me some surgeries, discuss the cases and to inquire how I would
approach the same problem in my practice. I was exposed to a plethora of hip,
knee and shoulder surgeries via open and arthroscopic techniques. Every morning
also started with an academic discussion which was very informative.
I also visited the Dedham outpatient
facility and the Boston Outpatient Surgical Centre (BOSS) in Waltham. At
Dedham, I spent the day with Dr. John Richmond and Dr. Kai Miethofer observing
shoulder arthroscopic procedures.At Waltham, Drs. Alan Curtis and B. Dr.
Brian Mckeon took charge.
Dr. Mckeon was also kind enough to take
me to the Boston Celtics training ground where I received some souvenirs from
the staff of the Celtics. I also got to take a lot of pictures including one at
Isaiah Thomas’ changing locker.
Back at Boston, Dr. Mattingly was also kind
enough to arrange tickets to a Boston Red Sox game for me.
I left Boston after a fulfilling week
with plenty of sweet memories. I wish to say a big ‘Thank you’ to Dr. Oheneba
Boachie-Adjei and FOCOS, AAOS, Anna Gurevich, the instructors at the OLC, Dr.
Mattingly, Debby DiMartino and the staff of NEBH, the staff of the Dedham
outpatient centre and the staff of Boston Outpatient surgical Centre. I really
appreciate what you have done for me.
Dr. Kenechi Madu
