BATHURST optometrist Kirsten Cluff will get the opportunity of a lifetime when she travels to Fiji as part of an outreach program this Sunday.
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The Fred Hollows Foundation and Specsavers have combined to assist with an intensive training program for Pacific Island students in their study toward their Postgraduate Diploma in Eye Care Nursing at the foundation’s Pacific Eye Institute.
Ms Cluff is looking forward to the trip.
“I’m pretty pumped to go, that’s for sure,” she said.
“The purpose of the trip is to teach some of the nurses in Fiji how to look at patients’ eyes and pick up problems and help them with glasses.
“Throughout university I heard about all the great things Fred Hollows did and to be able to be involved with the charity is a great opportunity.”
The Pacific Eye Institute is the Pacific region’s main training facility for eye health professionals.
The postgraduate students are trained specifically to provide eye care in Fiji and surrounding Pacific Island nations.
Ms Cluff will work with the student eye care nurses to carry out much-needed sight tests and distribute glasses to hundreds of locals in need.
She is looking forward to passing on some of the knowledge she has gained working in Bathurst and Orange Specsavers.
“I see first-hand how improving vision can change a person’s lifestyle and independence,” she said.
“It will be a really rewarding experience to be able to share my skills and knowledge with local graduate optometrists in Fiji – hopefully we can make a difference to the eye health of those in need.
“It’s an achievement to save someone’s sight, but it’s a real accomplishment to train local professionals so that they can go on to help their entire community.”