Hey everyone! I'm sorry I haven't been posting regularly...things have been extremely busy and hectic on my end and I didn't have a chance to get to a computer until now. But that's all because I had an awesome first week here in Ghana...lots to tell you about!
This week, the Crystal Eye Clinic Unite For Sight team at Accra went on outreaches to surrounding villages everyday. The team consisted of UFS staff from Crystal Eye Clinic and 7 of us volunteers. Our Accra group included Jerome, Ernest, Dennis, Bismark, John, Daniel, Naa, Ruju, Jane, Neelam, and myself. Everyday this week, we left the Telecentre at around 8 am, and drove between 1-3 hours to various rural villages and a refugee camp. Each outreach followed a similar structure. In each of the villages, there are local volunteers who assist UFS and Crystal Eye Clinic in promoting the eye camps, recruit people to attend the camps for vision screenings, and assist us with the screenings and language translation. Each village has its own unique Ghanaian dialect, so having the help of local people to translate is essential. Most of these outreaches were held in the village churches. The villages that we went to this past week were Aklamador, Sege, Buduburam Refugee Camp, Mafi Akyemfo, Akuse, Teshie, and Kpone.
Each UFS outreach began with a health talk to the villagers. In this health talk, Jerome, Ernest, or Dennis would explain to the villagers what Unite For Sight is, what they do, why they were there, and who we volunteers are. They also spoke extensively about eye diseases such as cataracts, glaucoma, eye trauma, etc., the problems that traditional practices can cause for eyes, and how UFS can provide surgeries free to cost to villagers if they need it. They also spoke about how we can provide patients with reading glasses, sunglasses, and eye medications at a subsidized cost, and the best practices that patients can follow to maintain good eye health. There was an opportunity at the end of the talk for patients to ask questions.
After the talk, our team split up into four stations: patient registration, visual acuity screening, eye examination, and medicine, glasses, and data entry station. We manned these stations, rotating every now and then.
Patient Registration: This station was mostly handled by the local village volunteers since they understand the language and can best communicate with the patients. At this station, the patient receives a registration card for us to fill out during the screening and examination.
Visual Acuity: I spent a lot of time running this station at the various outreaches. Many of you are familiar with reading the letters on a chart about 6 metres away during an appointment at the eye doctor to test your visual acuity, or ability to see things at a distance or up close. This test is very important in deciding what type of eyeglass lenses one may require for distance or up-close purposes. In North America, we read different letters that start at the top of a chart, and progressively get smaller. In the Ghanaian villages, many people are illiterate and unable to read different letters in the English alphabet. Thus, we use a unique chart to test visual acuity. The chart has only the letter E, pointing is different directions. Like a North American chart, the letters also get progressively smaller down the lines of the chart. Instead of asking the patients to read the letters aloud, we ask them to point in the direction that the E is pointing. We test their visual acuity for first the right eye and then the left eye in this way. Most of the time, we were able to communicate with the patients at this station through broken English or sign language; but sometimes we used the help of local village members serving as translators.
Eye Examination: This station was run by Ernest, Dennis, and Jerome, the ophthalmic nurses and optometrists from Crystal Eye Clinic. At this station, they listened to the patients eye complaints and examined the patients on an individual basis using instruments like an ophthalmoscope. After the examination, they would write down the observations on the patient's card, as well as their treatment recommendations which include the use of distance/reading/sunglasses, eye drop medications, or even eye operation. They would explain their observations to the patients, receive the patient's consent for surgery if applicable, and then send them to the medication dispensing station to obtain the appropriate medication.
Medication/Eyeglass Dispensing: I also spent a lot of time at this station. Here, we had many of the eyeglasses that we brought from North America ready for distribution, along with medications from pharmaceutical companies. Initially, UFS used to give out the eyeglasses and medications free of charge to the patients. However, it was found that the patients didn't take care of their glasses, lost them, used the medications more than they were supposed to, and didn't value them. They ended up just coming back to the next outreach and demanding new glasses and medications. Because of this, we now charge a 1 cedi fee for glasses, and a 4-5 cedi fee for medications, so that the patients will value them and take care of them. Interestingly, Ruju, a med student from Boston University, and one of the volunteers, is doing a research study on the value of cataract surgeries and eyeglasses to patients. She is conducting this study by interviewing the patients requiring glasses and surgery, asking them their opinions of the value of eye care, healthcare, and other factors that influence the study. I have observed many of Ruju's interviews, and they have been very interesting!
Each outreach was very busy, and took almost the entire day. Some days we managed to visit two villages in one day, but for most of them, we spent the whole day in one spot. It was hot and tiring, but lots of fun! I really really enjoyed doing them, interacting with the patients, performing visual acuity screenings, dispensing prescribed medications, and observing the ophthalmic staff at work. We saw a range of between 50-200 patients per day (yes, that many). It was certainly overwhelming, but the set up was so organized that we managed to get through everything quickly and efficiently, just in time for dinner.
Each day was very busy, and we all came back very sweaty and tired. But each outreach was very enjoyable, and I returned home every night with a great feeling of fulfillment and accomplishment. I am so happy that I had the opportunity to help these patients in rural villages in a small way. I enjoyed meeting them, learning new words in Twi and Ga, learning about culture, eating some local food, and getting to know them. Each patient was so grateful, kind, and welcoming to us. I felt accepted, and really appreciated it. I was also delighted to see that every dollar I raised was going straight to providing free eye surgeries for these patients. Many of them would otherwise be unable to afford the surgeries and screening services, and in many cases, could end up blind. It was a truly moving and incredible experience for me!
Believe it or not, in between our busy schedule, we managed to squeeze in some time for sightseeing! We went into town several times to eat at restaurants and sample local cuisine. Some of the things I tried this week included jollof rice, fried plantains, coconut vegetable curry, and even some Western favourites, with a spicy Ghanaian twist. Some of the other volunteers also sampled dishes of fufu, a meal eaten with the hands. I'll definitely write more about Ghanaian cuisine a bit later.
This week, we attended a reggae festival at a beach on the coast of Ghana. It was a interesting experience, and we now have a rastafarian chum named "SASA" (she claimed 5 minutes later that her name had become "SASASA"). We saw some very "interesting" people at the festival, enjoyed the beautiful beach, and had a great time.
We also went on a jungle canopy tour at Kakum National Park. This was an incredible experience! And believe it or not, I did not cry!! (For those of you who know me well, I cry on roller coasters and at the glass floor at the CN Tower in Toronto). We traversed the tree tops of the jungle on 7 long and extremely wobbly rope bridges. We observed very beautiful plants, butterflies, lizards, and crazy looking insects. There were supposedly monkeys, elephants, and other African animals in the jungle. However, I think the tourists were so loud that none of them wanted to come out (I don't blame them). In general, we all kept our cool on the bridges, until Dan decided to jump and wobble the whole thing. I'm not going to lie, my life flashed before my eyes during that point. But when I got to the end, I felt "strong like bull".
After the canopy tour, we visited the slave castles at Cape Coast. We learnt an incredible amount about Ghana's history and the history of West African slave trading. Cape Coast was one of the largest slave trading posts in West Africa, and a major spot for the export of slaves to the New World. The various slave castles throughout the African coast were set up by the Dutch, Portuguese, Danes, and British. Many Westerners arrived in Africa stating that they were there simply as missionaries or explorers. However, once the Europeans seized control of many African countries, they began trading humans for commodities. I have so much more to say about this visit and about the dark history of the slave trade in Africa with North and South America, and Europe. But unfortunately, I have to run now because we are leaving for a 6 day overnight outreach to the region of Jasikan. Ernest has been trying to scare us, telling us that we wont have any running water, AC, or fans. But, the Telecentre has been a bit crazy this week since our AC broke, our fan does not work, and the water stopped running completely in all of our rooms. So it is safe to say, I am very prepared for Jasikan. Either way, I'm super excited to go because past volunteers have described the overnight outreaches as truly incredible experiences! I am really looking forward to living in the village, seeing rural African landscape, and meeting the people of Jasikan. I won't have internet during this week, but I will post as soon as I can! Take care, and check back sooooooon!
-I
This week, the Crystal Eye Clinic Unite For Sight team at Accra went on outreaches to surrounding villages everyday. The team consisted of UFS staff from Crystal Eye Clinic and 7 of us volunteers. Our Accra group included Jerome, Ernest, Dennis, Bismark, John, Daniel, Naa, Ruju, Jane, Neelam, and myself. Everyday this week, we left the Telecentre at around 8 am, and drove between 1-3 hours to various rural villages and a refugee camp. Each outreach followed a similar structure. In each of the villages, there are local volunteers who assist UFS and Crystal Eye Clinic in promoting the eye camps, recruit people to attend the camps for vision screenings, and assist us with the screenings and language translation. Each village has its own unique Ghanaian dialect, so having the help of local people to translate is essential. Most of these outreaches were held in the village churches. The villages that we went to this past week were Aklamador, Sege, Buduburam Refugee Camp, Mafi Akyemfo, Akuse, Teshie, and Kpone.
Each UFS outreach began with a health talk to the villagers. In this health talk, Jerome, Ernest, or Dennis would explain to the villagers what Unite For Sight is, what they do, why they were there, and who we volunteers are. They also spoke extensively about eye diseases such as cataracts, glaucoma, eye trauma, etc., the problems that traditional practices can cause for eyes, and how UFS can provide surgeries free to cost to villagers if they need it. They also spoke about how we can provide patients with reading glasses, sunglasses, and eye medications at a subsidized cost, and the best practices that patients can follow to maintain good eye health. There was an opportunity at the end of the talk for patients to ask questions.
After the talk, our team split up into four stations: patient registration, visual acuity screening, eye examination, and medicine, glasses, and data entry station. We manned these stations, rotating every now and then.
Patient Registration: This station was mostly handled by the local village volunteers since they understand the language and can best communicate with the patients. At this station, the patient receives a registration card for us to fill out during the screening and examination.
Visual Acuity: I spent a lot of time running this station at the various outreaches. Many of you are familiar with reading the letters on a chart about 6 metres away during an appointment at the eye doctor to test your visual acuity, or ability to see things at a distance or up close. This test is very important in deciding what type of eyeglass lenses one may require for distance or up-close purposes. In North America, we read different letters that start at the top of a chart, and progressively get smaller. In the Ghanaian villages, many people are illiterate and unable to read different letters in the English alphabet. Thus, we use a unique chart to test visual acuity. The chart has only the letter E, pointing is different directions. Like a North American chart, the letters also get progressively smaller down the lines of the chart. Instead of asking the patients to read the letters aloud, we ask them to point in the direction that the E is pointing. We test their visual acuity for first the right eye and then the left eye in this way. Most of the time, we were able to communicate with the patients at this station through broken English or sign language; but sometimes we used the help of local village members serving as translators.
Eye Examination: This station was run by Ernest, Dennis, and Jerome, the ophthalmic nurses and optometrists from Crystal Eye Clinic. At this station, they listened to the patients eye complaints and examined the patients on an individual basis using instruments like an ophthalmoscope. After the examination, they would write down the observations on the patient's card, as well as their treatment recommendations which include the use of distance/reading/sunglasses, eye drop medications, or even eye operation. They would explain their observations to the patients, receive the patient's consent for surgery if applicable, and then send them to the medication dispensing station to obtain the appropriate medication.
Medication/Eyeglass Dispensing: I also spent a lot of time at this station. Here, we had many of the eyeglasses that we brought from North America ready for distribution, along with medications from pharmaceutical companies. Initially, UFS used to give out the eyeglasses and medications free of charge to the patients. However, it was found that the patients didn't take care of their glasses, lost them, used the medications more than they were supposed to, and didn't value them. They ended up just coming back to the next outreach and demanding new glasses and medications. Because of this, we now charge a 1 cedi fee for glasses, and a 4-5 cedi fee for medications, so that the patients will value them and take care of them. Interestingly, Ruju, a med student from Boston University, and one of the volunteers, is doing a research study on the value of cataract surgeries and eyeglasses to patients. She is conducting this study by interviewing the patients requiring glasses and surgery, asking them their opinions of the value of eye care, healthcare, and other factors that influence the study. I have observed many of Ruju's interviews, and they have been very interesting!
Each outreach was very busy, and took almost the entire day. Some days we managed to visit two villages in one day, but for most of them, we spent the whole day in one spot. It was hot and tiring, but lots of fun! I really really enjoyed doing them, interacting with the patients, performing visual acuity screenings, dispensing prescribed medications, and observing the ophthalmic staff at work. We saw a range of between 50-200 patients per day (yes, that many). It was certainly overwhelming, but the set up was so organized that we managed to get through everything quickly and efficiently, just in time for dinner.
Each day was very busy, and we all came back very sweaty and tired. But each outreach was very enjoyable, and I returned home every night with a great feeling of fulfillment and accomplishment. I am so happy that I had the opportunity to help these patients in rural villages in a small way. I enjoyed meeting them, learning new words in Twi and Ga, learning about culture, eating some local food, and getting to know them. Each patient was so grateful, kind, and welcoming to us. I felt accepted, and really appreciated it. I was also delighted to see that every dollar I raised was going straight to providing free eye surgeries for these patients. Many of them would otherwise be unable to afford the surgeries and screening services, and in many cases, could end up blind. It was a truly moving and incredible experience for me!
Believe it or not, in between our busy schedule, we managed to squeeze in some time for sightseeing! We went into town several times to eat at restaurants and sample local cuisine. Some of the things I tried this week included jollof rice, fried plantains, coconut vegetable curry, and even some Western favourites, with a spicy Ghanaian twist. Some of the other volunteers also sampled dishes of fufu, a meal eaten with the hands. I'll definitely write more about Ghanaian cuisine a bit later.
This week, we attended a reggae festival at a beach on the coast of Ghana. It was a interesting experience, and we now have a rastafarian chum named "SASA" (she claimed 5 minutes later that her name had become "SASASA"). We saw some very "interesting" people at the festival, enjoyed the beautiful beach, and had a great time.
We also went on a jungle canopy tour at Kakum National Park. This was an incredible experience! And believe it or not, I did not cry!! (For those of you who know me well, I cry on roller coasters and at the glass floor at the CN Tower in Toronto). We traversed the tree tops of the jungle on 7 long and extremely wobbly rope bridges. We observed very beautiful plants, butterflies, lizards, and crazy looking insects. There were supposedly monkeys, elephants, and other African animals in the jungle. However, I think the tourists were so loud that none of them wanted to come out (I don't blame them). In general, we all kept our cool on the bridges, until Dan decided to jump and wobble the whole thing. I'm not going to lie, my life flashed before my eyes during that point. But when I got to the end, I felt "strong like bull".
After the canopy tour, we visited the slave castles at Cape Coast. We learnt an incredible amount about Ghana's history and the history of West African slave trading. Cape Coast was one of the largest slave trading posts in West Africa, and a major spot for the export of slaves to the New World. The various slave castles throughout the African coast were set up by the Dutch, Portuguese, Danes, and British. Many Westerners arrived in Africa stating that they were there simply as missionaries or explorers. However, once the Europeans seized control of many African countries, they began trading humans for commodities. I have so much more to say about this visit and about the dark history of the slave trade in Africa with North and South America, and Europe. But unfortunately, I have to run now because we are leaving for a 6 day overnight outreach to the region of Jasikan. Ernest has been trying to scare us, telling us that we wont have any running water, AC, or fans. But, the Telecentre has been a bit crazy this week since our AC broke, our fan does not work, and the water stopped running completely in all of our rooms. So it is safe to say, I am very prepared for Jasikan. Either way, I'm super excited to go because past volunteers have described the overnight outreaches as truly incredible experiences! I am really looking forward to living in the village, seeing rural African landscape, and meeting the people of Jasikan. I won't have internet during this week, but I will post as soon as I can! Take care, and check back sooooooon!
-I
Incredible Indu[dudu]
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