Part IV - The Surgery

After over two weeks of walking around with a broken collarbone, the moment of truth arrived. We arrived at the hospital around 11:30 and I was promptly admitted by a nurse who took all my readings, confirmed my information and placed a “hospital band” on my arm. She also advised that unfortunately all the beds were occupied, so I was free to wander as long as I was back before 13:00.

So my wife and I explored the hospital. Shortly before 13:00 the surgeon came to talk to us. He advised that everything was ready to go; they were just waiting for the previous surgery to conclude. While talking to the surgeon, he received a call advising that the OR was available.

We proceeded to the admittance office where a bed was being wheeled in just for me. A quick change into the ‘oh show me your butt’ hospital gown, a kiss from Brigitte and off I was to my long awaited surgery.

I was delivered to the holding area outside of the surgery room where the nurse verified again all of the details including which collarbone I broke. The Surgeon and the Anesthesiologist stopped by to answer any last minute questions and mark my right arm to ensure everyone saw which one would be operated on.

A few minutes later I was in the operating room being hooked up to the monitoring machines and given oxygen. The next thing I remember was Dr. Vivek calling my name. It was over and went very well. Dr. Sanders updated my wife and although he could not use Plan A, Plan B was just as successful. Plan A and Plan B you say? Plan A was to attach the main collarbone back to the small piece of collarbone from the AC joint. Unfortunately, when he did that, the small piece of collarbone lifted from the AC joint and was also cracked into four pieces...not good. It essentially meant that I tore the ligaments in the AC joint. Plan B was to attach the main collarbone to the right shoulder blade and attach the little piece of collar bone to the main collarbone to allow it to heal.

So, as you can see below, I have a bit of a gap between the main collarbone and the right shoulder blade. The plate has effectively bridged the collarbone.




With a successful surgery, I was given a prescription of Percocet / Oxycodone and Cephalexin and sent home.

Next time in Part V – The Recovery

Part III - Health Care in the Cayman Islands – Preparing for Surgery

In Part II I left off having decided to wait two week until the arrival of Dr. David Sanders, a Canadian trauma orthopedic surgeon. The two weeks passed surprisingly quickly, especially considering that I actually stopped taking my pain medication a few days after the accident. "Mind over matter" as I would say to my wife. I actually didn't really need the pain medication as I slept most of the time and didn’t move much. The body is amazing how it takes care of itself and does not allow you to overdo it for too long.

On July 13 we met with Dr Sanders. We found him very helpful, and he provided us with all of the pros and cons of surgery versus waiting for the collarbone to heal itself. Yes, believe it or not, there was an option of waiting three to four months to see if the collarbone would set itself. As long as I didn't mind a collarbone sticking up an inch or so next to my shoulder. The main risk with the surgery was infection. However, no one could remember a case of infection from a surgery that was done on the Island. They have had a few cases, but these occured with individuals who had their surgery done off Island. One of the downsides to waiting was that if the collarbone did not heal, the other side of my collarbone (attached to the AC joint) would have become ineffective as the body would have started to dissolve it.

Having weighed the options, we decided to go ahead with the surgery and I was advised to arrive the next day at the hospital around 11:30 as my surgery was scheduled for approximately 13:00. I was then introduced to Dr. Vivek, the anesthesiologist - a very nice gentleman whom you immediately feel comfortable with and know he has everything under control. This was especially evident the day we met him as his receptionist was off sick and he was managing the whole office . After filling out some forms and discussing my history, Dr. Vivek walked my wife and I though the procedure and answered our questions.

Since I was never a patient at the Cayman Islands Hospital it was strongly suggested that I register after meeting with Dr. Vivek. The Cayman Islands Hospital is a 24 hour full service, 124 bed, non-profit Government Hospital in George Town. From their website: “It offers accident and emergency services; a wide range of surgical services; a Critical Care Unit, physiotherapy; a pharmacy; a central sterilisation unit; and laboratory services, including a state-of-the-art forensic unit - along with many other facilities a person would expect in a modern health care setting.” Registration was very easy and we were in and out of the hospital in about thirty minutes.

I was now exhausted and heading home knowing that the surgery was less than 24 hours away and that the surgery team was very experienced and knowledgeable, and that my collarbone repair could not have been in better hands.

Next time in Part IV – The Surgery.