Sixteen years of travel with a purpose

Prof. V. Srinivasan, M.A., M.S. (Oregon, USA)

Consultant, Instruments Maintenance Laboratory,

Aravind Eye Hospital, Madurai

1. KADUNA – NIGERIA

• The program was held in the National Eye Centre, Kaduna in Sep – Oct 2000

• 5 weeks program – Sponsored by Sight Savers International, UK

• 1 instructor from Aravind who accompanied me and 5 from Nigeria & Ghana trained at Aravind were the trainers

• 9 technicians from Nigeria, Ghana and The Gambia were trained

2. SYDNEY – AUSTRALIA

• To participate in the XXIX International Congress of Ophthalmology (ICO) at Sydney in Apr 2002

• Trip sponsored by Sight Savers International, UK

• Presented a paper on the courses held in Aravind and in Nigeria

3. HANOI – VIETNAM

• The program was held in National Institute of Ophthalmology, Hanoi in Feb – Mar 2004

• 7 weeks program – Sponsored by CBM (Christoffel Blinden Mission) Germany

• 2 instructors from Aravind who accompanied me and 3 from Vietnam trained at Aravind were the trainers.

• The course required language interpreters• 9 technicians from all over Vietnam were trained

4. DUBAI - UAE

• To participate in the 7th General Assembly of IAPB (International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness) held in Sep 2004

• Trip sponsored by Sight Savers International, UK

• Presented a paper of the Instruments Maintenance training program in Aravind

5. KIKUYU – KENYA

• The program was held at Eye Center, Kikuyu Hospital in Feb – Mar 2005

• 5 week program sponsored by Light for the World, Austria

• 2 instructors from Aravind who accompanied me and 2 of Kikuyu trained at Aravind were the trainers

• 9 persons from Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Cameroon and Nigeria were trained

6. KINGSTON – JAMAICA

• Resource person for a one week Advanced Clinical Engineering workshop organized by Ministry of Health Jamaica, Pan American Health Organization and Orbis International, NY, USA in Apr 2005

• Trip sponsored by Orbis • Participants were from several countries of the

Caribbean Islands

7. CHITTAGONG – BANGLADESH

• 1 week program at Chittagong Eye Infirmary and Training Complex held in Sep 2005

• 7 participants from all over Bangladesh representing BNSB (Bangladesh National Society for the Blind) attended

• 1 technician from Aravind who accompanied me and 1 from Chittagong trained at Aravind were the trainers

8. HANOI – VIETNAM

• In Oct 2005 invited to evaluate the training program being held at National Institute of Ophthalmology, Hanoi

• The program was run by persons trained in Madurai and Hanoi

• 1 week. Visit sponsored by CBM

9. LONDON – UK

• To attend a meeting of the Technology Working group of IAPB (International Agency for Prevention of Blindness) in London in Jun 2006

• Trip sponsored by Sight Savers International, UK

• Presented the details of the training programs in Madurai and elsewhere

10. ADDIS ABABA – ETHIOPIA

• 2 programs the first one 1 week in duration and the second 2 weeks in duration held in Government Hospital in Addis Ababa sponsored by Orbis International, NY, USA, in Jul 2006 and in Sep 2007

• For the first one person from Aravind accompanied me and 1 of Orbis served as trainers and for the second besides one person from Aravind 2 from Orbis were the trainers.

Instruments repaired is Instrument gained

11. KAMPALA – UGANDA

• One week program held in Kampala in Jul 2006 immediately following the first program in Ethiopia sponsored by Orbis International, NY,USA

• The same persons (one from Aravind and one from Orbis) served as trainers

• Much could not be achieved because of a very large number of technicians present and there were not enough instruments or trainers

12. DURBAN – SOUTH AFRICA

• To participate in the meeting of the Technology Working group of IAPB (International Agency for the Prevension of Blindness) in Mar 2007

• Trip sponsored by Sight Savers International, UK

• Gave a presentation on the training courses in Instruments maintenance in Madurai and elsewhere.

13. CAIRO – EGYPT

• 2 week program for technicians and 3 day program for doctors sponsored by Al Noor Foundation that runs several hospitals in many countries in the middle east

• The program was held in Al Noor Hospital in Cairo (the capital) in Jul – Aug 2008

• Two technicians from Aravind who accompanied me were the trainers

• 24 technicians and 12 Doctors from Egypt, Sudan and Yemen were trained

On river Nile

14. MBINGO – CAMEROON

• The program was held in Mar 2009 in Baptist Hospital in Mbingo, in the Anglophone (English Speaking) region of Cameroon. However there were participants from Francophone (French Speaking) regions as well. It was a bilingual course

• 2 weeks program sponsored by GTZ (German Government international aid agency) and the Government of Cameroon

• 1 technicians from Aravind who accompanied me and 2 from Cameroon trained at Aravind were the trainers

15. ASMARA – ERITREA

• The program was held in Asmara (the capital of Eritrea) & for a few days in Karan (a state HQ) in Mar – Apr 2010

• Four week program sponsored by the Ministry of Health of Eritrea and Fred Hollows Foundation, Australia

• 2 technicians from Aravind who accompanied me were the trainers

• 14 technicians were trained

Stone bells

16. BANGKOK – THAILAND

• To participate in the First Global Forum on Medical Devices organized by WHO (World Health Organization) in Sep 2010

• Trip sponsored by WHO• Presented a poster on the instruments

maintenance courses held in Madurai and elsewhere since 1996

17. MOSHI – TANZANIA

• Three week course sponsored by IAPB in June - July 2011 held at Kilimanjaro Center for Community Ophthalmology (KCCO), Moshi

• Two technicians from Aravind who accompanied me served as trainers

• 17 technicians – 6 from Tanzania, 3 from Kenya, 2 each from Madagascar and Burkina Faso, 1 each from Burundi, Rwanda Zambia and Zanzibar attended

18. Asuncion - Paraguay

• Two week course held in July 2012 held at Fundacion Vision, Asuncion

• Two trainers from Madurai who accompanied me served as trainers

• 11 technicians, 5 from Paraguay, 3 from Mexico, 2 each Bolivia and one from, Honduras were trained

Eye Health Hero: Aravind's Instruments Maintenance Team

Aravind Eye Care System (AECS) is proud to nominate their Instruments Maintenance department in Madurai as AECS’ 9GA Eye Health Hero.

The department is renowned for their technical skill and for their training programmes in developing countries in all the seven IAPB regions. Having trained close to 600 technicians in India and in 47 other countries, AECS’ Instruments Maintenance department has played a pivotal role in achieving the goals of VISION 2020: The Right to Sight.

Aravind Eye Care System, a group C member of IAPB, began as the Aravind Eye Hospital in 1976. From its humble beginnings as an eleven-bed hospital, AECS has grown to become one of the largest and most respected eye care institutions in the world.

According to WHO, at any time, 50% of medical equipment in developing countries cannot be used for want of maintenance. Critical to the success of VISION 2020’s objectives is the need to have well-trained paramedical persons and the maintenance and repair of eye care instruments, to ensure their functioning at all times. The Instruments Maintenance department meets the need of ensuring the presence of well-trained personnel, who are equipped to properly utilise and adequately maintain or repair instruments in underserviced settings.

The department runs an intense, short-term training programme with an emphasis on hands-on experience. The programme ensures adequate student-teacher ratios and has

Thank you – back in Madurai – JAI HIND