High praise for eye-care in Tobago

THE EDITOR: I kept an appointment Thursday with success. It was the final review of the surgery done on my left eye a month before. I was given the all clear I prayed for.

This success was achieved through the excellent outreach initiative of the Tobago Regional Health Authority, under the leadership of Dr Faith BYisrael, Secretary of Health and Social Services, her team: the management of Dr Duke, Medical Chief of Staff and Mrs Allison Rambaran-Edwards, administrator at the Roxborough Hospital in Northeast Tobago.

Under this group of dedicated professionals, along with their trained staff, the recent cataract surgery programme was conducted through October and November. Pre-operative screening was done in August and September, as advertised, through selection based on the outpatients from the eye clinic at the Signal Hill Hospital, with priority given to the elderly.

To give it its proper name, the procedure is called phacoemulsification cataract surgery extraction and the operations were performed by Dr Ponce-Martinez, surgeon (Canada) and Dr Yash Sharma, optician, (TT), assisted by the well-trained teams of nurses, technicians and support staff, who all performed brilliantly. From the security personnel to the attendants and kitchen staff, all contributed to this success and on behalf of all your grateful patients, I thank you.

You showed the best example of professional pride, performance and care, worthy of the highest praise. I must single out Mrs Rambaran-Edwards and Miss Mapp for their micro-management who multi-tasked at a level beyond anything I witnessed, or expected in our local health services, all done with a smile and the human touch. With ten like you, we can transform this country.

There are reasons cataracts develop, ageism being the most common, so it’s important to have your eyes checked at the free eye clinics at our regional hospitals, on referral. Cataract development is a slow painless process of declining vision, and if not treated, will lead to blindness. Diabetics must be vigilant because that illness accelerates the deterioration.

The actual procedural process takes between four to six hours with the surgery lasting 15 to 20 minutes. Thanks to the technology, medicines and skills, it is a pain-free procedure with minimal discomfort.

When Jimmy Cliff sang, “I can see clearly now” – it must have been the week following cataract surgery. For me, my long vision has been restored and colour has returned to my world. God be praised.

Thanks must also go to the Canadian government for their co-sponsoring this wonderful programme, in providing the equipment, technical support and the masterful services of Dr Ponce Martinez.

Stay safe. Be blessed.

DAVID ACHONG

Black Rock, Tobago