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Rural Outreach in Vietnam

Blog submitted by Neha Lalani

Neha Lalani is a student from ACS International School, through ORBIS' partnership with ACS Dillon was selected to participate in an internship for that allows students to take part in an ORBIS program overseas. 

 

After working for a week in Da Nang with the crew of the Flying Eye Hospital both on the plane and in the local hospital their willingness to give up their whole Saturday to help those who needed it was the most kind-hearted thing I’ve ever seen.

The first thing I noticed about the clinic in which ORBIS was going to be working was the surprising lack of people outside. It was 9 in the morning and we had just arrived at a rural outreach program being carried out just outside Hue, the location of the old Imperial City in Vietnam. It wasn’t until we entered the eye clinic that we saw the first few people waiting for treatment. The program had been advertised on the radio so there was close to 500 people who had turned up for basic eye checks. Perry Athanason, the Communications Director of the Flying Eye Hospital who organized this outreach, took us down the single corridor and showed us the process each person went through.

 
As soon as a person entered the clinic they were taken to Visual Acuity where their sight was tested in each eye, if the staff ophthalmologist thought they needed extra examination they were directed towards one of the three examination rooms. We were then each assigned one room, to act as general assistants to the staff ophthalmologists who were doing examinations in that room. The first patients had already come and were being examined by doctors from either Hue Eye Hospital or Da Nang Eye Hospital. After a patient had been to an examination room and they had a problem with their eyesight they were seen by ORBIS staff. The staff in the patient care room either helped to schedule their surgery at one of the local hospitals or gave them some more information on their condition. There were a few lucky people who were having normal eyesight and were able to go home straight away.

The patients who were being seen at this particular outreach program were mainly older adults whose most common complaint I noticed was cataracts in varying states of severity. Dr. Hunter Cherwek the medical director aboard the Flying Eye Hospital soon took over an empty room turning it into an extra examination room allowing more people to be seen at one time.

The whole process looked so smooth and practiced like everyone had been doing it for years, it ran so smoothly. By the end the staff had seen 225 patients collectively, which was a lot more than the expected 200. The whole day felt like it was over in a blink, there was so much to keep everyone busy. A day very well spent indeed!

 

Internship Visit to ORBIS

Blog submitted by Dillon Van Auken

Dillon Van Auken is a student from ACS International School, through ORBIS' partnership with ACS Dillon was selected to participate in an internship for that allows students to take part in an ORBIS program overseas. 

Today featured the commencement of ORBIS’s Da Nang program in the form of screening day, over which the ORBIS doctors (known as Volunteer Faculty or “VF’s”) examined around twenty-five patients to determine appropriate later treatment. 

As today was quite busy in preparation for the rest of the week, our job as interns was to mainly observe the doctors and identify prospective case-studies that we will be writing as the week goes on. Each of us went to certain specialty screening rooms, which included retinopathy, led by Dr Hampton; glaucoma, led by Dr Piltz-Seymour; and paediatrics, led by Dr Black. Gradually we moved in between rooms to grasp the wide array of ocular problems facing the local people and the subsequent treatment that they would be receiving from ORBIS.

Each doctor would examine the patients in front of several hands-on trainees, local doctors from Da Nang, other areas in Vietnam, and some from Cambodia and Laos. The doctor would examine the patient’s eyes with various instruments, whilst also explaining the observations to the hands-on trainees. It was truly amazing to watch the doctors do this, as they had to cope with actual treatment of a patient, teaching, and a language barrier all at once. Despite these tough requirements, each did so very calmly and efficiently.

After observing each patient, the doctors would decide whether to perform surgery on the Flying Eye Hospital, the Da Nang Eye Hospital, or to postpone surgery for local doctors to carry out at a later date. From each section, four patients were chosen to go to the Flying Eye Hospital, four were chosen to go the Da Nang Eye Hospital, and the rest were selected for later surgeries, although some did not require surgery at all.

So far, this trip has already been extremely moving and inspirational for me personally.  Observing the doctors today was one of the few times in my life where I have seen people be genuinely selfless and devoted to helping others.  Often, even in charity work, self-interest is still a major motivator, yet these doctors as well as the entire ORBIS staff are committed to genuine philanthropy. It was also very emotional to see the numerous patients, many of them children, with very severe eye conditions that could have been prevented with greater infrastructure and development. Yet, the sadness of their conditions is counteracted by the optimism that they will have treatment this week through the help of ORBIS. It will be great to see their progress at the hands of the wonderful ORBIS staff over the week.

An Unforgettable Year

Blog submitted by Dr Grace Prakalapakorn. Grace has been an ORBIS staff ophthalmologist onboard the Flying Eye Hospital for the past year.

Hello and Welcome aboard ORBIS!. Please find your seats, ensure your seat backs are in the upright position, tray tables are stored and your seat belts are fastened. Sit back, relax and enjoy the flight! 

 A year in the life of a staff ophthalmologist aboard the ORBIS Flying Eye Hospital was a busy one. There was always a lot of work to do and never a dull moment. When we were in plane mode, the days began early, often ended late and we would sometimes work for three straight weeks without a day off! Even when we had a “day off,” we would on occasion hold vision screenings or community outreach projects in schools or within a community. Off the plane, the work did not end. I conducted clinical reviews of surgical patients, helped with hospital based programs, evaluated local eye centers and hospitals and worked on program planning for upcoming programs. 

This year, I wore many hats alongside that of a staff ophthalmologist, including but not limited to a biomedical engineering assistant, ER doctor, tour guide, plane custodian, circulating OR nurse, community outreach volunteer, patient advocate, Cyber Sight® contributing author, character in a documentary, educator, student, goodwill ambassador, and even flight attendant (would you like some cream and sugar with your coffee?)!! ORBIS offers opportunities not only to the patients and doctors that participate in its programs, but also to its staff: how many people can say they’ve been to Nigeria 4 times in 8 months?! :)  

 Being a part of the Flying Eye Hospital was a very unique and rewarding experience. The most memorable part of the year was the people: the patients and their families, host doctors, crew members and our fabulous volunteers. One of the most memorable moments of my year was hearing the cries and tears of an elderly lady as her patch was removed the day after cataract surgery. She had been living with bilateral cataracts for many years and had become dependent on those around her due to her poor vision. Another is watching a young infant take those first few steps and walk around by herself after cataract surgery, whereas before surgery she was too timid to leave her mother’s arms because of her severe visual impairment. These are not uncommon stories you will hear around the world and to reflect about the difference we made in their lives and those of their families and communities by making them more independent and less of a burden on the resources of those around them. It always brings a smile to my face knowing that I was a part of that. But the work we do goes beyond these two individuals, we work to build capacity and enable and empower the local community, doctors, nurses, engineers, and technicians to care for those around them and hopefully teach others. 

 Thank you ORBIS for the work you do and for a wonderful year!!

Photos by Perry Athanason