BY DR. BRUCE, ONESIGHT ZAMBIA

“My name is Bruce Ngulube. I’m an Optometrist based at Mansa Vision Centre in Luapula Province of Zambia. In June 2019, OneSight Zambia involved me in the launch of three vision centres in Kaoma, Mumbwa and Senanga. I was asked to provide support in dispensing over the course of two weeks. 

The first week involved training each of the delegates from the three vision centres in Refraction, OScloud, Dispensing and Lensometry. In the second week, trainers were divided into three groups and each group was assigned to go to a particular vision centre for actual clinical work with patients. I was privileged to be one of the trainers who were assigned to go to Senanga Vision Centre. I served in Senanga alongside OneSight staff as well as Jeff, a volunteer from the USA. Senanga hospital management wonderfully welcomed us and gave us the support we needed as we provided services to the community. We spent our time there working closely with staff at the vision center. 

The main services I helped with at the clinic were patient screening and dispensing. I examined every patient, sending those with refractive errors for refraction and those with other eye conditions to seek the necessary treatment. Under dispensing, I helped vision center staff to refine their dispensing skills, such as helping patients choose ideal frames for their face, measuring patients’ faces and adjusting specs to fit each individual, and repairing patient’s spectacles using various tools in our toolbox. 

We worked well as a team. Jeff concentrated on offering support in refraction to the optometrist at the vision center and Sharon from OneSight Zambia concentrated on providing support in OScloud reporting and dispensing.

I saw many different eye conditions in Senanga vision Center, though most were similar to ones I had encountered before at my vision center in Mansa. It was a really wonderful opportunity for me to be involved in the launch, allowing me an opportunity to teach others the knowledge I had acquired in the launch of our vision center in Mansa (which was led by a team of international volunteers). What was most exciting to me about helping launch this center in Senanga was that I could now act as a local volunteer, supporting the set up of more vision centres. This allows us to reach out to many more patients that would otherwise have no access if OneSight did not partner with the Government of the Republic of Zambia.”

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