Kapsabet hospital performs first surgery to remove clot in brain

When Charles Mwandi, 67, was brought to Kapsabet County Referral Hospital in Nandi on August 15, he was critically sick and unconscious.

A Good Samaritan dropped him off at the hospital casualty section and left him under the care of medical officers who were on duty.

Mwandi was diagnosed with subdural haematoma, a medical condition caused by a blood clot in the brain. He needed an emergency evacuation, considering the danger that the condition posed to his life.

However, efforts to secure admission for the patient at hospitals in a neighbouring county were unsuccessful, so doctors at the Kapsabet County Referral Hospital made a decision to go ahead with the critical emergency operation.

Dr Ismael Ayabei, Kapsabet Medical Superintendent, led the team that passionately cooperated and assembled at the theatre ready to execute a critical and risky surgery.

"There was no relative or caregiver, so I had to sign a consent form for the patient before he was pushed into the surgery room," said Dr Ayabei.

Among the doctors who participated in the emergency surgery are Dr Shadrack Tanui (general surgeon) Dr Henry Koros (medical officer), Dr Meshack Tum (medical officer intern) and Dr Faith Ngeno (medical officer intern).

Others include theatre nurse Rael Rotich, and perioperative nurses Cynthia Maritim and Judy Nyaberi. It was a three-hour operation on craniotomy where the accumulated blood in the brain was successfully evacuated, and the patient spent the night in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) for close monitoring.

"He responded positively, and it was interesting that he came into consciousness the following day. He was in stable condition, and was relocated to the surgical ward for further recovery," said Dr Ayabei.

"We are glad that his health is out of danger, and he is ready to be discharged," he added.

When The Saturday Standard visited Mwandi at the hospital's Nyayo Ward on Thursday, a hint of a smile could be seen on his face as he rose up for an interview.

He said he found himself in the hospital two days after he fell sick at his Kipsegur village home in Emgwen sub-county.

"It started as a headache and high blood pressure then I suddenly lost consciousness," he said.

"I feel better and stronger than when I was admitted, it is by God's favour that I am still alive. The doctor told me I would not be alive now were it not for the surgery," he added.

However, this first successful brain surgery was not performed by design but rather due to unavoidable circumstances.

The existence of an ICU facility, sufficient oxygen and doctors on call made execution of the delicate surgery possible.