Our 4th graders had the incredible opportunity to simulate surgery and much more with the help of 4th grade parents Certified Surgical Technologist Ray Cervantes and Dr. Christiane Guberman and Dr. Ashwini Lakshmanan, both of the healthcare company Kaiser Permanente. The parents helped set up three stations, at which the 4th graders, dressed in real surgical gowns,…

• joined in on a surgery (performed on Despicable Me minion stuffies!), in which students "cut" fake skin and veins, used a surgical staple gun to stitch the faux skin together, and learned about Cervantes' volunteer surgery work in Uganda, East Africa
• studied the anatomy of a heart and brain by looking at plastic models, used stethoscopes to listen to heartbeats, and learned about related medical procedures,
• and got an inside look at an ultrasound (using a teaching machine!), took in information about babies and birth, and learned how Guberman and Lakshmanan work together at the hospital!

Thank you to our parent volunteers for facilitating such an incredible experience!