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BRAIN BUSTER
PATROL
N. B. Andrews
March 20, 2016
It was Latunde Odeku
(the Nigerian neurosurgeon and poineer of
neurosurgery in West Africa) who stated that
practising neurosurgery in Africa is like eating
soup with a knife.
This summarised his
frustration with the ignorance that confronted
him from his patients and unfortunately his
peers.
Odeku documented his
experiences thoroughly and persevered.
Very little has changed
in fifty years.
Last week, I saw a PhD
holder and former CEO of one of our top
industrial establishments.
He has been paralysed
and confined to a wheel chair for 6 months
because of a benign small spinal cord tumor at
the upper part of his Thoracic spine.
He had been admitted on
two occasions by a locally trained neurosurgeon
for surgery and discharged on both occasions
without the surgery being done.
He was told the surgery
will achieve nothing.
This is not at all
unusual since the Korle Gonno trainees shy away
from any kind of simple microneurosurgery for
obvious reasons.
Meanwhile, for benign
tumors of the spine causing paralysis, surgery
is the standard treatment that provides any hope
for improvement.
So I ask Mr PhD to
discuss his proposed surgery with his sons and
family and revert to me for a surgery date.
He calls back 5 days
later.
He informs me that his
sons have refused surgery.
I asked why?
He tells me that they
think it is a bad omen that he has been admitted
and discharged 2x.
I inquire from him the
whereabuts of his sons and why they have not
called me directly- and he gleefully tells me
that they are based in the US and Sweden.
So I ask Mr PhD; "Are
you telling me that because of someone's
incompetence or ignorance leading to your being
admitted and discharged 2x, that is a bad omen
for people who live and work in the US and
Sweden?".
Mr. PhD: Oh, they live
and work there but were born in Ghana and are
Ghanaians
Brainbuster aka
Brooklyn Bad Boy: Sir, that is what I do not
understand....so please explain it to me so that
I might learn something.
They were born in Ghana
but now live and work in a more enlightened
environment but instead of learning better stuf,
they still cling to the nonsense they were
brought up with or learnt in Ghana?
Is this not sad? How is
that possible?
Mr. PhD: That is what
they say and I have to agree with them. Anyway
how much will the surgery cost?
BBBoy: What does that
have to do with it? Even if we say it is free of
charge for everything will that change the bad
omen? You said surgery was a bad omen -not so-
or have you changed your mind?
Mr. PhD: I will call
you when I change my mind.
Last October, I
operated on a 67 year old lady with a similar
tumor in the same location.
She had been totally
paralysed and wheel chair bound for over seven
months since Feb 2015.
She had also been
admitted and discharged 2x without surgery being
done.......guess by who?
No marks for getting it
right that it was the local Korle Gonno Brigade.
Explanation given?
Surgery will not work.
By God's grace she had
surgery and is now walking independently.
Indeed, last month her
daughter was telling me that every Sunday her
Mom and Dad get dressed and go for brunch at the
Movenpick; Mom climbs into the front seat of the
pickup truck unassisted.
The aforementioned
local black stars saw her doing physio and
walking and asked the patient, " How come you
are walking?".
Her simple answer, "I
had an operation in Tema".
They smiled and moved
on.
There is no rest for
the wicked.
Enter stage left- a 50
year old man totally blind in both eyes from a
brain tumor diagnosed at the Kollege of
Knowledge Korle Gonno (KKKG) in September
2015....needs surgery urgently.
Enter stage right a 47
year old man with a large brain tumor diagnosed
almost a year ago at KKKG- also waiting for
surgery.
Following him is a one
month old baby boy with spina bifida abandoned
at a Traditional Birth Attendant. He was taken
to the KKKG and told to go to either Kumasi or
Tamale for his surgery. We arrange and operate
on him within 48hours.
And Latunde Odeku
thought that it was bad when he arrived in
Ibadan in the 1960's.
He should come and see
me now.
I will take him to the
KKKG and my favorite haunts on Brain Buster
Patrol.
I am sure that he will
love it and we will have lots to talk about.
Now, with apologies to
J.F. O Mustaffah, "Steady the head!"
N.B. ANDREWS
Blebo We-Sakumo
March 18
2016
Editor's note
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latunde_Odeku
Latunde Odeku pioneered
brain and spinal cord surgery in West Africa. He
was also an accomplished poet. |
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Ghana@59: Vision, Dream, Reality or
Hallucination?
Commentary, March 19, Ghanadot
- Ido
not doubt for a minute that our President is a very hard
working man but to suggest that Nkrumah's vision has
been realized is either an attempt to amuse us or a sign
of very serious disturbance in the man's relationship
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U.S. military
restricts travel to West Africa, notes recent attacks
GlobalPost, March 18, Ghanadot - The Pentagon
on Wednesday restricted U.S. service members' travel to
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order limits unofficial travel by U.S. military
personnel to Senegal, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso
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Ghana on High Alert
After Ivory Coast Terror Attack
VOA, March 19, Ghanadot
- Ghana’s government has put the
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Haggle over type of
oil contracts delays E&P bil
Graphic, March 18, Ghanadot
- A disagreement
over a suitable fiscal regime for the petroleum sector
has delayed the passage of the new exploration and
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