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Hi everyone,
I'm writing to inform you about Winter and Spring 2005 international internship opportunities to help restore eyesight and prevent blindness in a refugee camp in Ghana and in rural villages in Ghana, Tanzania, and Benin. Additional Summer 2005 Internship Opportunities are available in Ghana, Tanzania, Benin, Uganda, Nigeria, Cameroon, India, and Thailand.
Contact [email protected] for an application and details. All persons over the age of 18 are welcome to apply, including premedical students, medical students, public health professionals, nurses, graduate students, doctors, and others.
Dates:
Low Cost Eyeglass Distribution Program in Tanzania
December 28 - January 10 - Rolling Application Deadline
Buduburum Refugee Camp in Ghana
December 28 - February 28, 2005 - Rolling Application Deadline
Humjibre, Ghana
February 1 - March 30, 2005 - Rolling Application Deadline
Nyamuswa, Tanzania 2005
January 15 - March 15, 2005 - Rolling Application Deadline
Pobe, Benin 2005
January 15 - May 15, 2005 - Rolling Application Deadline
Ghana, Tanzania, Benin, Uganda, Nigeria, Cameroon, India, and Thailand
Summer 2005 - Rolling Application Deadline
Spring 2005 Internship Descriptions
Humjibre, Nyamuswa, and Pobe
In Humjibre, Ghana and Nyamuswa, Tanzania, volunteers will receive training and will then screen patients for operable cataracts, arrange for cataract surgeries, distribute eyeglasses and conduct eye health education in local schools. These programs are a continuation of very successful Unite For Sight cataract surgery program in Humjibre and Nyamuswa during Summer 2004.
In Pobe, Benin, volunteers will distribute eyeglasses, conduct eye health education in local schools, and coordinate a new cataract surgery program. This program is also a continuation of a successful Summer 2004 Unite For Sight program
Buduburum Refugee Camp in Ghana
In coordination with the local Liberian Refugee-run NGO ?Self-Help Initiatives For Sustainable Development? (SHIFSD), Unite For Sight is designing a comprehensive eye health program for children and teachers in the forty-three schools at the Buduburum Refugee Camp near Accra. The first Unite For Sight volunteers will arrive at the refugee camp on December 28, 2004 to distribute eyeglasses, screen for eye disease and coordinate treatment at an eye clinic, implement eye health education programs for children, and implement a Train-the-Trainer program for teachers in the schools. The Unite For Sight volunteers will be trained by ophthalmologists at the Christian Eye Clinic in Tema to screen for eye disease and prescribe eyeglasses.
At present, there is only one health clinic with a single qualified physician for the 82,000 residents at the Buduburum Refugee Camp. Because the population does not have an eye doctor available, Unite For Sight volunteers will screen the children for treatable eye conditions, including refractive error, congenital cataracts, xerophthalmia, trachoma, river blindness, and conjunctivitis, and coordinate their care by ophthalmologists at the newly established Christian Eye Clinic in Tema, Ghana.
While the children at the Buduburum Refugee Camp will be taught by Unite For Sight volunteers about eye anatomy and eye health, the teachers will be trained in basic visual acuity testing and participate in seminars about eye health so that they can recognize potential eye disease or visual acuity problems among their students and refer them to a doctor for treatment. The trained teachers will develop an ongoing, sustainable relationship with the ophthalmologists at the Christian Eye Clinic in Tema. The teachers will also be encouraged to include Unite For Sight?s educational curriculum about eye health in their classroom.
Previous Unite For Sight Volunteers Share Their Experiences
?Unite For Sight?s volunteers announced the eye clinic at church and beat the gong gong to spread the word. As the clinic went on for the second week, word spread to other communities, and patients came to the clinic from as far away as two hours. Even after the clinic ended, people brought blind relatives from long distances.? ?Alison Polk-Williams, Summer 2004, Humjibre, Ghana
"My experience in Tanzania this summer was life-changing. It has solidified my commitment to pursue international public health and to reach out to underserved communities who cannot get care on their own. By screening people for cataracts, distributing eyeglasses, providing medications, and teaching eye health in schools, I gave hope to the village of Nyamuswa. Where advanced, high-tech care was but a dream, I showed that ophthalmic care, and health care in general, can be a reality for them, despite the poverty and lack of access to services. I can't imagine doing anything more worthwhile with my summer." -- Sachin Jain, Unite For Sight Volunteer, Summer 2004, Nyamuswa, Tanzania
?It was a wonderful experience working in Tanzania. The need for eyeglasses and other eye services is real and urgent. You sense it from the questions people ask, the requests they make and the stories they tell. Average wage is Tsh 48,000 (USD 43) while a pair of eyeglasses costs Tsh 30,000 (USD 27). People cannot afford eyeglasses. Misconceptions about eye surgeries remain. Yet, every Tanzanian I met has been very receptive to our programs. From the policy makers to the villagers, everyone supports our work, appreciates our efforts and invites us back to Tanzania. Sensing a need in the community is one thing, being supported and respected by the people made the internship very much more fulfilling.? ?Sally Ong, Summer 2004, Tanzania
Contact [email protected] and www.uniteforsight.org for an application and details.
I'm writing to inform you about Winter and Spring 2005 international internship opportunities to help restore eyesight and prevent blindness in a refugee camp in Ghana and in rural villages in Ghana, Tanzania, and Benin. Additional Summer 2005 Internship Opportunities are available in Ghana, Tanzania, Benin, Uganda, Nigeria, Cameroon, India, and Thailand.
Contact [email protected] for an application and details. All persons over the age of 18 are welcome to apply, including premedical students, medical students, public health professionals, nurses, graduate students, doctors, and others.
Dates:
Low Cost Eyeglass Distribution Program in Tanzania
December 28 - January 10 - Rolling Application Deadline
Buduburum Refugee Camp in Ghana
December 28 - February 28, 2005 - Rolling Application Deadline
Humjibre, Ghana
February 1 - March 30, 2005 - Rolling Application Deadline
Nyamuswa, Tanzania 2005
January 15 - March 15, 2005 - Rolling Application Deadline
Pobe, Benin 2005
January 15 - May 15, 2005 - Rolling Application Deadline
Ghana, Tanzania, Benin, Uganda, Nigeria, Cameroon, India, and Thailand
Summer 2005 - Rolling Application Deadline
Spring 2005 Internship Descriptions
Humjibre, Nyamuswa, and Pobe
In Humjibre, Ghana and Nyamuswa, Tanzania, volunteers will receive training and will then screen patients for operable cataracts, arrange for cataract surgeries, distribute eyeglasses and conduct eye health education in local schools. These programs are a continuation of very successful Unite For Sight cataract surgery program in Humjibre and Nyamuswa during Summer 2004.
In Pobe, Benin, volunteers will distribute eyeglasses, conduct eye health education in local schools, and coordinate a new cataract surgery program. This program is also a continuation of a successful Summer 2004 Unite For Sight program
Buduburum Refugee Camp in Ghana
In coordination with the local Liberian Refugee-run NGO ?Self-Help Initiatives For Sustainable Development? (SHIFSD), Unite For Sight is designing a comprehensive eye health program for children and teachers in the forty-three schools at the Buduburum Refugee Camp near Accra. The first Unite For Sight volunteers will arrive at the refugee camp on December 28, 2004 to distribute eyeglasses, screen for eye disease and coordinate treatment at an eye clinic, implement eye health education programs for children, and implement a Train-the-Trainer program for teachers in the schools. The Unite For Sight volunteers will be trained by ophthalmologists at the Christian Eye Clinic in Tema to screen for eye disease and prescribe eyeglasses.
At present, there is only one health clinic with a single qualified physician for the 82,000 residents at the Buduburum Refugee Camp. Because the population does not have an eye doctor available, Unite For Sight volunteers will screen the children for treatable eye conditions, including refractive error, congenital cataracts, xerophthalmia, trachoma, river blindness, and conjunctivitis, and coordinate their care by ophthalmologists at the newly established Christian Eye Clinic in Tema, Ghana.
While the children at the Buduburum Refugee Camp will be taught by Unite For Sight volunteers about eye anatomy and eye health, the teachers will be trained in basic visual acuity testing and participate in seminars about eye health so that they can recognize potential eye disease or visual acuity problems among their students and refer them to a doctor for treatment. The trained teachers will develop an ongoing, sustainable relationship with the ophthalmologists at the Christian Eye Clinic in Tema. The teachers will also be encouraged to include Unite For Sight?s educational curriculum about eye health in their classroom.
Previous Unite For Sight Volunteers Share Their Experiences
?Unite For Sight?s volunteers announced the eye clinic at church and beat the gong gong to spread the word. As the clinic went on for the second week, word spread to other communities, and patients came to the clinic from as far away as two hours. Even after the clinic ended, people brought blind relatives from long distances.? ?Alison Polk-Williams, Summer 2004, Humjibre, Ghana
"My experience in Tanzania this summer was life-changing. It has solidified my commitment to pursue international public health and to reach out to underserved communities who cannot get care on their own. By screening people for cataracts, distributing eyeglasses, providing medications, and teaching eye health in schools, I gave hope to the village of Nyamuswa. Where advanced, high-tech care was but a dream, I showed that ophthalmic care, and health care in general, can be a reality for them, despite the poverty and lack of access to services. I can't imagine doing anything more worthwhile with my summer." -- Sachin Jain, Unite For Sight Volunteer, Summer 2004, Nyamuswa, Tanzania
?It was a wonderful experience working in Tanzania. The need for eyeglasses and other eye services is real and urgent. You sense it from the questions people ask, the requests they make and the stories they tell. Average wage is Tsh 48,000 (USD 43) while a pair of eyeglasses costs Tsh 30,000 (USD 27). People cannot afford eyeglasses. Misconceptions about eye surgeries remain. Yet, every Tanzanian I met has been very receptive to our programs. From the policy makers to the villagers, everyone supports our work, appreciates our efforts and invites us back to Tanzania. Sensing a need in the community is one thing, being supported and respected by the people made the internship very much more fulfilling.? ?Sally Ong, Summer 2004, Tanzania
Contact [email protected] and www.uniteforsight.org for an application and details.
