Third world healthcare.

Today in Anatomy lab something happened that we've been repeatedly warned about since the beginning of the semester. At the very start of the first class we were reminded about the closed-toe shoe policy and why it's so important. We're handling surgical grade scalpels and occasionally when you're digging through layers of fat, your hands get slippery and you drop your tools; sometimes on your foot. In those circumstances it's best to have at least tennis shoes on, but preferably thick rubber boots. Crocs and ballerina slippers may look nicer or be more comfortable, and technically they meet the "closed-toe" requirement, but you wear them at your own risk.

Well, today a girl wearing ballerina flats dropped her scalpel on her foot and sure enough, the sucker stuck straight up like a tiny flagpole. She bled pretty heavily and went to the nurse's office to get patched up and was back in class 20 minutes later (cuz that's how vet students roll).

Later our professor told us that if the girl had required stitches she would have gotten a nasty shock at the local hospital; apparently they don't use a local anesthetic for routine sutures. I'm assuming you just stick a piece of leather between your teeth and bite down hard. I'm torn. On one hand, I hope I never require stitches while on this island. On the other hand, that's a great story that'll get me free drinks for the rest of my life. Particularly if it happens after 6th semester, when I'm able to do the sutures myself.