EyeWorld is the official news magazine of the American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery.
Issue link: https://digital.eyeworld.org/i/78712
April 2012 EW IN OTHER NEWS 73 Charity tourism in Honduras by Enette Ngoei EyeWorld Contributing Editor EyeWorld talks to Crystal Clear Vision about its global charity work R ight from inception, char- ity work was going to be an integral part of LASIK company Crystal Clear Vision's mission to pro- vide premium LASIK technology at an affordable price. "I want some of the money from every single procedure to go to- ward that mission, I want patients to be able to contribute to that as well, and I want doctors that we work with, both the optometrists and the surgeons, to be able to contribute," said Jeffery J. Machat, M.D., CEO, Crystal Clear Vision, Birmingham, Ala. Indeed, at his LASIK company, everyone is involved in giving back to society. Crystal Clear Vision do- nates $10 from every procedure to one of its partner charities according to each patient's choosing. Staff members right through to manage- ment have gone to the local United Way Community Food Bank and packed boxes, and gone on the Juve- nile Diabetes Research Foundation Walkathon and raised money. Their charitable efforts also extend to Honduras, where Crystal Clear Vision helps provide year-round eyecare services for people in need. There, preventing blindness, whether by providing basic vitamins or performing cataract surgery, is a significant part of its mission. Preventing blindness in Honduras Young Choi, M.D., head, Crystal Clear Vision's Charitable Division, has been to Honduras three times in the past year as part of efforts to set up a permanent clinic. When the clinic is complete, Dr. Choi will be one of the surgeons operating there. "We have reached out to local leaders, doctors, and NGOs to estab- lish a long-term relationship, and we have a facility that we have started to upgrade in order to provide surgical care," Dr. Choi said. "I try to facilitate, coordinate, and communicate with other doc- tors and agencies interested in the same geographic area of Honduras individual from abroad to go out and help the local people. While he's amazed by those who go on their own and work with local clinics, he wants to be able to help in a big way, and in order to do that, logistics have to be simplified. What that means, he said, is A wet Dr. Choi delivers supplies in Honduras arranging for groups to go together and ensuring that everything from food, lodging, group support, and extracurricular activities to equip- ment and awareness of clinics being run is organized so that volunteers will feel like they made a big differ- ence and enjoyed their time there as well. This is a little like "charity tourism," Dr. Machat said. "I think that's the secret in get- ting the most people to help in the shortest amount of time," he said. In spring 2011, students from the University of Alabama at Birm- ingham's School of Optometry joined Crystal Clear Vision in Hon- duras to provide some primary eye- care. Over a 4-day period, they saw over 600 patients and screened some surgical patients who are awaiting surgery, Dr. Choi said. Crystal Clear Vision's biggest An example of the living conditions in Honduras where Crystal Clear Vision helps provide eyecare services for people in need Source (all): Crystal Clear Vision to improve communication and avoid redundancy in our mutual effort to help the Honduran people," he said. Staff and patients alike are hugely supportive of everything that Crystal Clear Vision is doing in Honduras, Dr. Machat said. "What's amazing to me is just how positive they view our philoso- phy and our very strong belief that we need to give back and help those who aren't able to help themselves," he said. He admitted he wasn't sure about the whole idea of combining business and charity at first, "be- cause part of me was concerned that [patients] would look at it and say they want a better price or this is more work, but it's actually been the exact opposite." A way to do more each time In trying to work out all the obsta- cles involved in charity work abroad, Dr. Machat spoke to differ- ent charity groups, clinics, and doc- tors including Geoff Tabin, M.D., co-director, Himalayan Cataract Project; it became very clear to him that a huge amount of logistical planning and preparation would be needed. He was told that surgeons would go to Honduras once every year or once every 2-3 years. With all the organization involved it wasn't sur- prising how difficult it was for any achievement in Honduras to date is getting the cooperation of all the different groups and actually estab- lishing a clinic, Dr. Machat says, "because you need to have the ac- ceptance [of groups already there], and people need to believe that what you're doing is something positive and is respectful of what they've already established." In terms of long-term goals, Dr. Machat said the group's biggest one is to provide equipment, facilities, and training for locals and local doctors to be able to continue the work themselves. But for now, his team is trying to help the people who have been in need for a long time, deal with the backlog, and provide ongoing care where volunteers will go back fre- quently, not just once a year but hopefully every month or two. EW Editors' note: Dr. Machat is the CEO of Crystal Clear Vision. Dr. Choi is a surgeon at Crystal Clear Vision. Contact information Sondra Black, O.D., vice president, Clinical Operations, Crystal Clear Vision: 610-969- 9775, sondra.black@crystalclearvision.com