While most people would consider heart surgery a personal and private matter, 41-year-old Charles McQuillan decided to document the operation entirely on film, The Daily Mail reported.
McQuillan, who was diagnosed with coronary artery disease in 2009, had to be awake during the procedure, which is called a coronary angiography, to cooperate with the doctor’s instructions. In an angiography, the doctor asks the patient to do certain things, for example: take deep breaths, cough or place their arms in various positions. In an effort to distract him from the pain, McQuillan decided to chart every stage of the surgery.
“For me, taking these pictures is a way of dealing with it - my own forms of catharsis,” he told the Irish Times.
The photographs, which have now been awarded the BT Northern Ireland Press Photographer of the Year, were taken by three cameras set-up around the room. By using a remote control,McQuillan was able to capture the procedure from various angles.
The moving images include one of his two sons saying goodbye to their father, and one of him lying on the operating table as doctors gather the necessary equipment and medical instruments.
McQuillan quickly recovered from the operation, and he takes pills daily to manage his heart condition.
Click here to read more on this story from the Daily Mail and to see McQuillan’s pictures.
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