COM Outlook Winter 2019

NOVA SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY | 45 certain instruments we have access to in the United States that allow us to perform these cases with more ease. However, I did not have access to these types of instruments in Ethiopia,” she explained. “Planning this surgery was especially challenging, because we had to secure resources, such as blood products for transfusion for the patient, as well as proper equipment and tools to use intraoperatively,” she added. “In lieu of the surgical tools accessible in the United States, the Ethiopian surgeon and I had to depend on our skills to avoid bleeding complica- tions, and to stop them if we encountered them.” As a first-time visitor to Ethiopia, Abdulla said the experience was both “amazing and life changing. It really allowed us to appreciate the opportunities and access to health care we have in the United States,” she said. † Above: Paul Chu, M.D., an anesthesiologist from Springfield, Ohio; Mulu Atsbaha, M.D., a surgical resident from Mekelle University; and Alia Abdulla. Right: Abdulla, third from left, works with the surgical team at Ayder Referral Hospital.