November 2017
Ann-Marie Ablett is a medical volunteer with Orbis. She’s been on an incredible 31 Orbis missions – taking time out from her NHS job as an ophthalmic nurse to go and help save people’s sight in some of the world’s poorest countries.
She’s showing no sign of stopping. As Ann-Marie says, “I love this work so much, I’m afraid I’m a little addicted to it!”
She is currently gearing up for her 32nd Orbis project: training medical teams in Kolkata, India. Despite her fear of flying, she can’t wait to head out once again and share the latest sterilisation and sanitation techniques with local ophthalmic staff.
Meanwhile, Orbis’s unique Flying Eye Hospital has returned from a successful two-week project in Cameroon and is getting ready for its final trip of 2017 – flying to Bangladesh next month.
The Flying Eye Hospital in Cameroon
All this work is central to Operation Sight: Orbis’s ambitious plan aimed at carrying out a million medical, optical and surgical treatments by the end of next year, as well as training medical staff, supporting hospitals and more.
The first year of Operation Sight has gone well, but now with just a year to go, we have to keep the momentum going. We can only meet our target with your help. You can read more about Operation Sight here.
You can stay up to date with all of this work by signing up to receive emails from our teams overseas. In the coming weeks, Flying Eye Hospital volunteers will be sending out emails with updates on their progress in both Cameroon and Bangladesh.
They’ll be able to tell you exactly what they’ve been doing, and share the stories of some of the people they have treated. These first-hand stories of saving sight are so inspiring and heart-warming – they really give you a sense of the huge impact Orbis can have, with our supporters’ help.
Ann-Marie herself will be sending an email too, once she gets to Kolkata. “Training visits like this one are always fascinating,” she says. “I love sharing skills and knowledge with others, of course, but I always learn so much as well, not to mention meeting some incredible people. I’m sure I’ll have loads to write about!”
Ann-Marie caring for a patient in Mongolia in 2014
And please don’t forget to support Operation Sight with a gift Any amount you can give this Christmas would be so valuable in helping Orbis to keep saving sight in the coming year. Thank you.
