Yasir Iqbal, an employee at New World Medical, extends our mission to Benefit Humanity. This mission inspires not only the innovation found in the Kahook Dual Blade® and ClearPath™, but it also inspires employees to participate in sponsored mission trips in order to reach patients in under-served countries.
Read about Yasir’s experience in his own words below:
I went on a mission trip with Dr. Brian Francis to El Fuerte, Sinaloa, Mexico, in Feb 2019.
It was a three day trip through an organization called Liga International-Flying Doctors of Mercy. We were part of the eye clinic group of about 20 people from the US. We had about 6 Ophthalmologists, and the rest was support staff.
We flew to El Fuerte in small private planes as there is not an airport in El Fuerte, and travel
by road was not recommended as it is treacherous and dangerous. The day we landed, we went to the clinic the same afternoon to screen patients. The second day was full of OR activities.
It also makes you realize that so many people are trying to help humanity, and we need to do our part as much as we can to contribute.
Every day we did about 50 cataract surgeries. The clinic is not equipped with modern Phaco machines. There was a tremendous amount of patients there, and unfortunately, we could not treat all and only took in patients who were blinded by cataracts. The second day we did the same amount of procedures. Both days we got in the clinic around 7:30 AM and left around 7 PM. The last day before flying out, we did post-ops and gave medications to patients.
It certainly was a fantastic experience, which I will remember for a lifetime. It gives you a perspective on life and how we are so blessed with everything we have and not to take simple things in life for granted. It also makes you realize that so many people are trying to help humanity, and we need to do our part as much as we can to contribute. It does not matter if you are not a doctor or a surgeon, you can still be impactful and help.
