The Rotary Club of Taveuni Island

thanks all who assisted with this project

Taveuni Eye Project

10th Annual Eye Surgery

A humanitarian project that completed 339 Eye Surgeries

in October 2015

The 10th Taveuni Eye Project was a huge success – th e best results ever.

339 sight restoring surgeries to 255 individuals in cluding 4 totally blind children were completed wit h the result that those who were once dependent on their families for everything now are independent,

This project is superior to every other eye program running in Fiji. The project surgeries are all don e by volunteers this includes doctors and nurses backed up by local and international volunteer workers and all at no cost to the patients. The project has a focus on patients who are from rural and remote areas an d who lack money. The project covers all travel from home to Taveuni hospital and back to home, all meals ev en on route, accommodation on Taveuni and all medical cos ts. They each get a supply of medication, eye patc hes, eye drops and a pair of sunglasses to protect their new lens.

11 overseas volunteers attended and 22 locals assis ted with the project.

Doctors - Three surgeons, one GP and an Anesthetist attended this year

Patients came from all over Fiji, so many that some were camped at Tutu Rural Training Centre and some at Taveuni Central Primary.

Again this year the Fiji Society for the Blind cond ucted Fiji wide eye screenings and submitted patien ts names for treatment consideration.

Over 2600 Fijians have had their sight restored ove r the 10 years of this project.

Prior to the project commencing this year many peop le were again involved in collecting used/good sunglasses in both New Zealand and Melbourne.

This year the project team organised the supply of two new eye surgery stretchers to better cater for patients and surgeons.

Without the support of all our volunteers and donors

this project would never happen.

Taveuni Eye Project 2015

Taveuni

Eye Project

2015

Michael Prasad officiated at the opened ceremony fo r the 10 th Annual Taveuni Eye Project on Monday the 19th of October 2015 at 8.00 am. He commenced with a welcome to all and a thank you to all for making this years project possible. During the ceremony D 9920 District Governor Jennie Herring also thanked everyone and officially opened the project. In conc lusion Michael read a short message from Geoffrey Amos who sent his apologies as he was in hospital i n Auckland and unable to attend.

Chaplain Seru Turaga Beci from Becu Levu Secondary was called upon to bless the project and all who work on it and during his prayer he read the follow ing very fitting bible versus :-

Matthew 6 Verses 22 and part 23

The eye is the lamp of the body, so then if you eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light.

But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be ful l of darkness.

Ineke ( Charge Nurse )

Michael ( Patient Logistics )

Joey ( Patient Services )

Dr Jeff ( Surgeon )Geoffrey ( Lead )

Project Leads

Dr David ( Surgeon )

Dr Grace ( Surgeon )Dr Greg ( GP )

Patients came from all over Fiji

255Total

1YASAWA

1WAIYEVO

1VISEISEI

1VATUKOULA

34TAVUA

19TAVENUI

6SUVA

1SOMOSOMO

17SAVU SAVU

13RAKIRAKI

1QAMEA

1NAITASIRI

9NADI

1MATEI

36LEVUKA

1LAVENA

62LAUTOKA

2LAUCALA

45LABASA

1GAU

1BUA

1BA

PatientsVILLAGE

Headquarters for the Taveuni Eye Project 2015

All operations were carried out at Taveuni Hospital – thank you Ministry of Health

Accommodation

Dormitory style sleeping

arrangements – patients indicated

that luxury treatment was given to

them – a mattress, sheets, pillow

and showers but how many sheets

did we have to wash ??

Meals at the Hospital, Tutu, Central Primary School, Residences and for Boats and Buses

– very important – but how many ? Too many to count – in the thousands

Meals

continued

Transport to Taveuni

Patients arrive by ship both big and

small, bus, car, taxi and on foot.

Carers who travel with patients are Very Important

Carers from home are a vital link – most patients had never left their village before this project

Assessment and Measuring

All patients details are fully

recorded at every stage as

they are tested and assessed

then scheduled for surgery.

Pre-Operation

Each patient’s eye

is “ blocked “ by a

doctor and then

they wait in line for

their turn in

surgery.

The Operating Theatres – Main

The new Stryker Stretchers in use – they allowed surgeons to do the long days in relative

comfort, allowed for two simultaneous operations in the main operating theatre as well as

giving “ excellent patient support “

The Operating Theatres – Main

The Operating Theatres - SecondarySecondary Theatre – used for Pterygiums , Slit Lamp and other tests and investigations

The Operating Theatres – General AnestheticThe Main Theatre – was used for 4 children under general anesthetic - middle Saturday

Pictured here is the first child patient returning to the general ward to wake up fully.

Dr Luke

Anesthetist

Morning After Surgery - Post Op Checks –Crucial Instructions to patients are given in all languages used and medicines/sunglasses given out.

One group of patients the morning after their surgery this is the highlight of each day as

patients see with their corrected eyes for the first time

Results - Taveuni Eye Project 2015

Taveuni Eye Project 2015 – kids are very special

The little 4 year old above had never seen his

mother clearly until the eye surgery and he was so

happy with the result.

Eye corrections will mean a better life for all children and a chance to go

to school.

Taveuni

Eye

Project

2015

This young mother now has

much clearer vision to

enable her to build a better life and

the “ smile says it all “.

Taveuni Eye Project 2015

One special patient from Somosomo – Flora is 78

years old – and had not left her house in years – two

eyes done and the result is she and her daughter

have found a new freedom

Taveuni Logistics - Impressive

Many and varied jobs including, but not limited to, setting up, unpacking, driving, patient reassuring, growing

vegetables, baking bread, cooking chickens, photographing, checking, fixing, fuelling, shopping, carting, carrying,

packing up, lifting, moving etc etc.

“even two days of solid rain did not stop them”

Taveuni Logistics -

continued

Taveuni Logistics - continued

Very happy patients on the Goundar Shipping Ltd Ferry going home in style.

Photo by Ana Raravuso

Taveuni Eye Project 2015

What did the total Taveuni Eye Project Team achieve in 14 days ?

255 individual patients received eyesight restoring treatments with

339 eye operations being carried out.

Cataracts: 275 ( some patients with both eyes )Pterygiums: 57Removal of a lesion upper eye lid: 1Scar tissue removal: 1Symblephion :1Secondary lens implant: 3General Anesthetic cases : 4Removal cataract, aphakic: 1Yag laser treatment: 6Slitlamp examinations: 73Eye testing – no surgery was required nor possible: 100

Last Patient for 2015

Photo by Jon Glendon

Just a few stories from this years project :-

A local grandmother returns home and sees her grand kids running out to meet her and is amazed at seeing them for the first time – she only recognises each of them by their voices as they speak – very excited homecoming and a scene to watch with great pride as the project had returned her sight.

Upon having the eye patch removed from one eye “Flo ra” remarked that I was white – she and I had spoken over the last few days of her preparat ion and travel but she had never seen me –she knew my voice and remarked on my skin and hair color as white.

Mother and Daughter are now free to move around bot h in and out of their house – both have lost husbands and live together but the daughter ha s been afraid to leave the house without the seeking of a carer to mind her mother in case s he injures herself – not always easy to find at short notice. A new found freedom has been found for both of them.

Pastor Peter ah Koy – could not do his job as good as he would like because he could not read his bible and had to both rely on memory and others to read it for him. He was told to wait for the eye cataract to mature before an operation coul d be done. He heard of this free eye surgery in Taveuni and contacted the Rotary Club in Suva and everything was organised for him to be part of the event. He commented that it was amazing that Doctor Jeff Rutgard and his volunteer team from overseas just fixed the pro blem without having to wait for it to mature. His final comment was “ The project has given me bac k my life and I can now continue with my work thank you so much “.

Without the support of all our volunteers and donors this would never happen.

Taveuni Eye Project 2015

The Rotary Foundation and Rotary International.

Vodafone ATH Fiji Foundation.

Goundar Shipping Ltd.

Stryker South Pacific.

Gibson Freight Australia Pty Ltd

L.B. Miller Trust.

Giltrap Family Trust.

Rex Godso.

Sunny and Jerry Blonsky.

Rotary Club of Newmarket.

Rotary Club of Boronia.

Without the support of all our donors this project would never happen.

Taveuni Eye Project 2015

Major Donors

An Awesome Team Effort

Well Done All

It is impossible to list everyone in this brief report

who assisted the project

this year so we are sending everyone a

Vinaka vaka levu –( a big thank you )

Queries for Taveuni Eye Project to –

Geoffrey Amos Rotary Club of Taveuni Island

raikivi@me.com mobile – +679 9992371

Report Produced by :- Peter Malden, Rotary Club of Boronia, Melbourne. Australia.

Photos by :- Jon Glendon, Ana Raravuso, Dennis Millard, Lorna Cammick,

Joey Amos, Jan Malden and Peter Malden.