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Volunteer Abroad With Unite For Sight in Spring, Summer, Winter, or Fall
Make A Difference!
What is Unite For Sight's Mission? Unite For Sight (http://www.uniteforsight.org) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that empowers communities worldwide to improve eye health and eliminate preventable blindness.
What Do Volunteers Do?: Unite For Sights volunteers range from undergraduate and medical students, educators, nurses, and public health professionals to optometrists and ophthalmologists. The volunteers serve as interns at eye clinics. The eye clinics eye doctors and Unite For Sight volunteers jointly participate on community-based screening programs. The clinics eye doctors diagnose and treat eye disease in the field, and surgical patients are brought to the eye clinic for surgery. Unite For Sight funds the surgeries for those patients unable to afford eye care.
How Do I Apply? The application as well as complete details about Unite For Sight's international opportunities are available at http://www.uniteforsight.org/intl_volunteer/
What Do Volunteers Say?:
"I helped restore sight to children and their impoverished families while working with the doctors Sinhas (Dr. Ajit Sinha, Dr. Satyajit Sinha, and Dr. Pooja Sinha) at A.B. Eye Institute in Patna, Bihar. The Sinhas and I worked from 9am to 10pm almost six full days a week. We saw hundreds of patientsthe Sinhas saw more patients in one day than many ophthalmologists in the U.S. see in three weeks. We diagnosed all types of eye diseases, prescribed and distributed eyeglasses I had collected in California, and performed vision-restoring surgeries on patients who had been suffering for years. While our job was not always easy, the results were always rewarding. For the first time in my life, I felt like I made an immediate and meaningful impact on peoples lives.
Yet this medical work was only a small part of my journey through India. Living with the Sinhas, I had the opportunity to experience what so few foreigners ever see: the traditional life of a modern Indian family. I didnt just travel to India, take a few pictures in front of a few historic monuments, and write off my visit as complete. Instead, I got to see part of the real India; I ate traditional meals with the family and attended a Hindu wedding. I was a minority for the first time in my lifethe only white person in a sea of tanner faces. Having traveled to a state where few foreigners visit, I was confronted daily by stares and cultural blunders. Everyone I met, however, was more than happy to help me understand my misconceptions. Never before have I felt so isolated yet congruently welcomed. Like the contradictions evident in Indias very nature, I felt simultaneously productive and worthless, significant and inconsequential. Ultimately, what I took away from this experience was so much more than just an advanced understanding of ophthalmology.
So I want to thank the organization Unite For Sight for helping get me to India. I want to thank the Sinhas for warmly accepting me into their home and work. And I want to thank the residents of India, and Patna especially, for making my journey so magnificent. You welcomed me into your country and allowed me a glimpse of its soul. Bohut Dhanyavad."--Leigha Winters, Stanford University Student, Unite For Sight Volunteer in Bihar, India
"My learning experiences with Unite For Sight and Uma Eye Clinic are priceless. I don't think I would have had the opportunity anywhere else to perform phacoemulsification on a goat's eye, or to work with eye doctors to examine patients for cataracts and refractive complications. I came home with experiences that even medical students dream about. Uma Eye Clinic provided the finest teachers and doctors that enhanced my knowledge about ophthalmology. After each eye camp, about 5 patients would travel back with us in the van for cataract surgery. We the interns were able to participate in every step of the patient's journey-the screening process, patient histories, preparation for the surgery that included a myriad of clinical tests and a thorough analysis of the eyes, the surgery process, and finally watching the patient's reaction as he or she regained their vision.
I feel that I have grown tremendously over this past summer, not only in the knowledge that I acquired from the physicians at Uma Eye Clinic, but my interactions with people in the villages and children in the schools. I am deeply indebted to Unite for Sight for giving me this opportunity to volunteer and learn about international medicine and health care."--Prachi Mayenkar, University of Missouri-Columbia BA/MD Candidate, Unite for Sight Volunteer in Chennai, India
"This experience literally changed my life. It was one of the most amazing and rewarding experiences I have ever had. If given the chance, I would do it all over again and for longer (maybe this experience is to be continued..). I learned so much about Ghana and myself. I learned that I would seriously like to consider optometry, especially so that I could come back to places like Ghana and help develop the eye care system (which lacks enough support). I am actually continuing my work as an officer in the Unite for Sight Chapter on campus. I will never forget this trip! You have no idea how much this memory means to me and what it has inspired me to do and be!"--Hafeezah Omar, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill Student, Unite For Sight Volunteer in Accra, Ghana
"The combination of an effective, rewarding volunteer program and immersion into a fascinating culture makes Unite for Sight a wonderfully unique program and is one that I would recommend to anyone looking to make a significant impact for good in a developing area of the world. It was a blessing to be able to provide these key services to people who normally would have been unable to afford them. An invaluable and truly touching aspect of the volunteer experience was the direct interaction I was able to have with the many patients who came to our clinic. Their genuine thankfulness for our help alone made this trip absolutely worthwhile."--Patrick Grimm, Yale University Student, Unite For Sight Volunteer in Patriensa, Ghana
What Do Eye Clinics Say?: "So many people tell me to thank you and your family each day for the help you have given by giving sight to the poor. Our desire to serve and poor patients desire to see would not have been possible without the help and support of Unite For Sight." --Dr. Ajit Sinha, Director, A.B. Eye Institute; President, All India Ophthalmological Society
"The question I have always asked myself is 'what would have happened to all these people who have benefited from Unite For Sight programs had the organization not come to their aid?' It is likely that many would have perished in their agony."--Dr. James Clarke, Crystal Eye Clinic, Ghana
"I must say that Unite for Sight volunteers have come to give hope to the people of Tamale and Northern Region, and all of us appreciate the wonderful work these volunteers are doing for these poor and vulnerable people who otherwise would not have access to quality eye care services. We need you more than ever to be able to achieve the VISION 2020 goal of the Right to Sight for all by the year 2020."--Dr. Seth Wanye, Eye Clinic of Tamale Teaching Hospital, Ghana
What Programs Are Available?
Spring 2007
Africa
Accra, Ghana View details
January 1-31; February 1-28; March 1-30; March 10-April 10; April 18-May 18; May 1-30 (volunteers may participate in more than 1 session)
Asikuma, Ghana View details
March 10-30
Tamale, Ghana View details
January 15 - February 15; Flexible Dates for 3 weeks or more in February and March; April 21-May 21
Asia
Chennai, India View details
January 1-31; January 15-February 15; February 1-28; February 15-March 15; March 1-30; March 15-April 15; April 1-30; April 15-May 15; May 1-30 (volunteers may participate in more than 1 session)
Dhenkanal, Orissa, India View details
March 1-30
Jaipur, India View details
March 10-20
Patna, Bihar, India View details
March 10-20; March 24-April 1; Flexible Dates for 2 weeks
Pondicherry, India View details
Flexible dates for 4 weeks or more.
Summer 2007
Africa
Accra, Ghana View details
May 1-15; May 15-30; June 1-30; July 1-31; August 1-25; August 1-30
Asikuma, Ghana View details
June 1-30; July 1-31
Patriensa Village in Asante Akim District, Ghana View details
June 1-30; July 1-31; August 1-25 (volunteers may participate in more than 1 session)
Tamale, Ghana View details
May 22 - July 1; July 1 - August 18 (volunteers may participate in more than 1 session)
Asia
Chennai, India View details
May 10 - May 30; June 1-31; June 15-July 15; July 1-31; July 15-August 15; August 1-15; August 15-30 (volunteers may participate in more than 1 session)
Dhenkanal, Orissa, India View details
May 1-30; May 10-30; June 1-30; June 1 - July 15; July 1-31; August 1-25 (volunteers may participate in more than 1 session)
Jaipur, India View details
August 15-30
Jodhpur, India View details
July 1-August 1
New Delhi, India View details
June 1-30, July 1-31; August 1-25
Patna, Bihar, India View details
May 25 - June 10; July 1-15; July 15 - 31; August 10-20
Pondicherry, India View details
Flexible dates for 4 weeks or more.
Western Thailand, Thailand View details
May 19 - July 1; July 1 - August 15
Fall 2007
Africa
Tamale, Ghana View details
August 18 - September 15; September 15 - October 15
Asia
Chennai, India View details
September 1-20; September 15 - October 15; October 1-31; October 15 - November 15; November 1-30
Dhenkanal, Orissa, India View details
November 1 - December 1; November 1 - December 20
Patna, Bihar, India View details
Flexible Dates For 2 Weeks
Make A Difference!
What is Unite For Sight's Mission? Unite For Sight (http://www.uniteforsight.org) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that empowers communities worldwide to improve eye health and eliminate preventable blindness.
What Do Volunteers Do?: Unite For Sights volunteers range from undergraduate and medical students, educators, nurses, and public health professionals to optometrists and ophthalmologists. The volunteers serve as interns at eye clinics. The eye clinics eye doctors and Unite For Sight volunteers jointly participate on community-based screening programs. The clinics eye doctors diagnose and treat eye disease in the field, and surgical patients are brought to the eye clinic for surgery. Unite For Sight funds the surgeries for those patients unable to afford eye care.
How Do I Apply? The application as well as complete details about Unite For Sight's international opportunities are available at http://www.uniteforsight.org/intl_volunteer/
What Do Volunteers Say?:
"I helped restore sight to children and their impoverished families while working with the doctors Sinhas (Dr. Ajit Sinha, Dr. Satyajit Sinha, and Dr. Pooja Sinha) at A.B. Eye Institute in Patna, Bihar. The Sinhas and I worked from 9am to 10pm almost six full days a week. We saw hundreds of patientsthe Sinhas saw more patients in one day than many ophthalmologists in the U.S. see in three weeks. We diagnosed all types of eye diseases, prescribed and distributed eyeglasses I had collected in California, and performed vision-restoring surgeries on patients who had been suffering for years. While our job was not always easy, the results were always rewarding. For the first time in my life, I felt like I made an immediate and meaningful impact on peoples lives.
Yet this medical work was only a small part of my journey through India. Living with the Sinhas, I had the opportunity to experience what so few foreigners ever see: the traditional life of a modern Indian family. I didnt just travel to India, take a few pictures in front of a few historic monuments, and write off my visit as complete. Instead, I got to see part of the real India; I ate traditional meals with the family and attended a Hindu wedding. I was a minority for the first time in my lifethe only white person in a sea of tanner faces. Having traveled to a state where few foreigners visit, I was confronted daily by stares and cultural blunders. Everyone I met, however, was more than happy to help me understand my misconceptions. Never before have I felt so isolated yet congruently welcomed. Like the contradictions evident in Indias very nature, I felt simultaneously productive and worthless, significant and inconsequential. Ultimately, what I took away from this experience was so much more than just an advanced understanding of ophthalmology.
So I want to thank the organization Unite For Sight for helping get me to India. I want to thank the Sinhas for warmly accepting me into their home and work. And I want to thank the residents of India, and Patna especially, for making my journey so magnificent. You welcomed me into your country and allowed me a glimpse of its soul. Bohut Dhanyavad."--Leigha Winters, Stanford University Student, Unite For Sight Volunteer in Bihar, India
"My learning experiences with Unite For Sight and Uma Eye Clinic are priceless. I don't think I would have had the opportunity anywhere else to perform phacoemulsification on a goat's eye, or to work with eye doctors to examine patients for cataracts and refractive complications. I came home with experiences that even medical students dream about. Uma Eye Clinic provided the finest teachers and doctors that enhanced my knowledge about ophthalmology. After each eye camp, about 5 patients would travel back with us in the van for cataract surgery. We the interns were able to participate in every step of the patient's journey-the screening process, patient histories, preparation for the surgery that included a myriad of clinical tests and a thorough analysis of the eyes, the surgery process, and finally watching the patient's reaction as he or she regained their vision.
I feel that I have grown tremendously over this past summer, not only in the knowledge that I acquired from the physicians at Uma Eye Clinic, but my interactions with people in the villages and children in the schools. I am deeply indebted to Unite for Sight for giving me this opportunity to volunteer and learn about international medicine and health care."--Prachi Mayenkar, University of Missouri-Columbia BA/MD Candidate, Unite for Sight Volunteer in Chennai, India
"This experience literally changed my life. It was one of the most amazing and rewarding experiences I have ever had. If given the chance, I would do it all over again and for longer (maybe this experience is to be continued..). I learned so much about Ghana and myself. I learned that I would seriously like to consider optometry, especially so that I could come back to places like Ghana and help develop the eye care system (which lacks enough support). I am actually continuing my work as an officer in the Unite for Sight Chapter on campus. I will never forget this trip! You have no idea how much this memory means to me and what it has inspired me to do and be!"--Hafeezah Omar, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill Student, Unite For Sight Volunteer in Accra, Ghana
"The combination of an effective, rewarding volunteer program and immersion into a fascinating culture makes Unite for Sight a wonderfully unique program and is one that I would recommend to anyone looking to make a significant impact for good in a developing area of the world. It was a blessing to be able to provide these key services to people who normally would have been unable to afford them. An invaluable and truly touching aspect of the volunteer experience was the direct interaction I was able to have with the many patients who came to our clinic. Their genuine thankfulness for our help alone made this trip absolutely worthwhile."--Patrick Grimm, Yale University Student, Unite For Sight Volunteer in Patriensa, Ghana
What Do Eye Clinics Say?: "So many people tell me to thank you and your family each day for the help you have given by giving sight to the poor. Our desire to serve and poor patients desire to see would not have been possible without the help and support of Unite For Sight." --Dr. Ajit Sinha, Director, A.B. Eye Institute; President, All India Ophthalmological Society
"The question I have always asked myself is 'what would have happened to all these people who have benefited from Unite For Sight programs had the organization not come to their aid?' It is likely that many would have perished in their agony."--Dr. James Clarke, Crystal Eye Clinic, Ghana
"I must say that Unite for Sight volunteers have come to give hope to the people of Tamale and Northern Region, and all of us appreciate the wonderful work these volunteers are doing for these poor and vulnerable people who otherwise would not have access to quality eye care services. We need you more than ever to be able to achieve the VISION 2020 goal of the Right to Sight for all by the year 2020."--Dr. Seth Wanye, Eye Clinic of Tamale Teaching Hospital, Ghana
What Programs Are Available?
Spring 2007
Africa
Accra, Ghana View details
January 1-31; February 1-28; March 1-30; March 10-April 10; April 18-May 18; May 1-30 (volunteers may participate in more than 1 session)
Asikuma, Ghana View details
March 10-30
Tamale, Ghana View details
January 15 - February 15; Flexible Dates for 3 weeks or more in February and March; April 21-May 21
Asia
Chennai, India View details
January 1-31; January 15-February 15; February 1-28; February 15-March 15; March 1-30; March 15-April 15; April 1-30; April 15-May 15; May 1-30 (volunteers may participate in more than 1 session)
Dhenkanal, Orissa, India View details
March 1-30
Jaipur, India View details
March 10-20
Patna, Bihar, India View details
March 10-20; March 24-April 1; Flexible Dates for 2 weeks
Pondicherry, India View details
Flexible dates for 4 weeks or more.
Summer 2007
Africa
Accra, Ghana View details
May 1-15; May 15-30; June 1-30; July 1-31; August 1-25; August 1-30
Asikuma, Ghana View details
June 1-30; July 1-31
Patriensa Village in Asante Akim District, Ghana View details
June 1-30; July 1-31; August 1-25 (volunteers may participate in more than 1 session)
Tamale, Ghana View details
May 22 - July 1; July 1 - August 18 (volunteers may participate in more than 1 session)
Asia
Chennai, India View details
May 10 - May 30; June 1-31; June 15-July 15; July 1-31; July 15-August 15; August 1-15; August 15-30 (volunteers may participate in more than 1 session)
Dhenkanal, Orissa, India View details
May 1-30; May 10-30; June 1-30; June 1 - July 15; July 1-31; August 1-25 (volunteers may participate in more than 1 session)
Jaipur, India View details
August 15-30
Jodhpur, India View details
July 1-August 1
New Delhi, India View details
June 1-30, July 1-31; August 1-25
Patna, Bihar, India View details
May 25 - June 10; July 1-15; July 15 - 31; August 10-20
Pondicherry, India View details
Flexible dates for 4 weeks or more.
Western Thailand, Thailand View details
May 19 - July 1; July 1 - August 15
Fall 2007
Africa
Tamale, Ghana View details
August 18 - September 15; September 15 - October 15
Asia
Chennai, India View details
September 1-20; September 15 - October 15; October 1-31; October 15 - November 15; November 1-30
Dhenkanal, Orissa, India View details
November 1 - December 1; November 1 - December 20
Patna, Bihar, India View details
Flexible Dates For 2 Weeks
