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Cataract Chronicles-25 years


As I celebrate my 25th year volunteering as an eye surgeon in Southeast Asia. I am delighted to share photos and stories about the vision challenges and the people and cultures of India, Nepal, Cambodia, Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Vietnam.  - Dr. Gary Barth

Chronicle 8 - Respecting Local Traditions in a Western Operating Room

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Has anyone ever seen flowers and garlands in an operating room? There is an excellent reason that the answer is no—-it is impossible to sterilize flowers.

 

This photo shows a “blessing” at the “auspicious hour.” Our PRASAD surgical team waited to start our day of 300 free cataract surgeries. 
 

The surgeons and nurses had been standing quite a while, fully scrubbed, gowned, and gloved, waiting for the Brahmin priest and his entourage to bless each of the five operating microscopes with flower garlands.  

 

Perhaps the Brahmin priest was correct in the timing of the exact moment to start: I was not aware of any infections post-operatively.  

 

Tellingly, I had the best vantage point to check for infections: as the youngest surgeon, I was drafted to do all the post-operative exams.  That meant that the first day after surgery, I examined 300 patients.  

 

The next day, I re-examined the first 300 and the 300 from the second surgical day. 

 

After two days, I could start discharging those medically cleared. On the last day of surgery, the senior surgeons left the camp, and I stayed until everyone was discharged. There were 1,102 patients in total, and there was no evidence of infections at the end of the camp.  

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