An exhausted but happy team returned from Senegal on Sunday, February 2! Driven by a desire to reach the most vulnerable, IRIS Mundial volunteers took part in a mobile eye clinic. The itinerary was unprecedented for IRIS Mundial's one-time projects: three different destinations, two days in each location. “We got closer to the people rather than them coming to us. In this way, we hoped to reach the most disadvantaged people. And we were right!” says Dr. Marie-Chantal Hudon, Optometrist and Head of Vision Care.
Armed with light, portable equipment and sufficient quantities of glasses to meet the needs of the patients, 14 volunteers and two IRIS Mundial employees flew to Senegal on January 22, 2025, with the Podor department as their destination.
Located in the far north of Senegal, on the border with Mauritania, Podor is a small, landlocked town that lives peacefully and simply. With its Sahelian climate, Podor's inhabitants often have to contend with dry, hot winds blowing sand from the Sahara, sometimes reaching 70 km/h.
Organized in collaboration with IRIS Mundial's long-standing partner, the Association St-Louisienne pour la Vue (ASV), the mobile clinic awaited professionals in Ndioum, Podor and Thillé Boubacar.
Diary of the IRIS Mundial Mission in Senegal
Days 1 and 2 - Ndioum (45 km from Podor) - A tough start
Awake before sunrise, our valiant volunteers swallow their breakfast as best they can at 6:30 am. The bus doesn't wait, leaving at 7am sharp to arrive in Ndioum by 8am. We are welcomed in the premises of the Virtual University of Ndioum. A modern building, with more than enough space for all our workstations. Relief. We quickly have to decide how to organize the space to deploy our clinic. This installation is a first test of the efficiency of our mobile clinic: each volunteer knows what they have to do, each bin of material is identified by workstation and contains everything needed to carry out the examinations and services at each station. Despite this, it takes us more than 2h30 to set up. Technical and computer problems. A little stressed by this unforeseen delay, we nevertheless start the clinic in good spirits. We manage to see 122 people that first day, which isn't too bad after all. But we're back at the hotel only after 7.30 p.m. for a quick supper before going to bed. The second day goes off without a hitch, and we manage to see 196 people! First attempt to dismantle the clinic on this second and last day in Ndioum: incredible performance, everything was dismantled and packed away in 45 minutes! This bodes well for the future...
Day 3 and 4 - Podor - An efficient team
Hosted for this second stage at the Podor hospital, 5 min from our hotel, our volunteers have a little respite from the hustle and bustle. A small team leaves 30 min early to scout the site and determine where to set up each station, saving us precious time during installation. The hospital is already packed with people awaiting our arrival. The premises on loan to us are very well laid out and also have air-conditioning. Relief. This time, we've understood how to set up efficiently, and we're ready in less than an hour. Unfortunately, we had to wait for chairs for 1h30 before we could start... So our first day in Podor was also a little less productive than we'd hoped. We did, however, manage to see 137 patients. We were even able to finish relatively early, at daylight, so that the volunteers could walk home and take the pulse of their host town for the week. A welcome break in the middle of an intense mission. The next day, we managed to see over 200 people! The pace is set and the work flows smoothly. Every volunteer knows his or her role and works with the efficiency we've come to expect from all IRIS Mundial missions, enabling us to see so many people in such a short space of time...!
Days 5 and 6 - Thillé Boubacar (50 km from Podor) - Mission accomplished
Once again, the alarm goes off very early for these last two days. Third and final destination: Thillé Boubacar, an hour's drive from Podor. We are welcomed into the health center and maternity ward. For the first time, we'll be in two separate buildings. This will add a little logistical difficulty, but nothing insurmountable for our seasoned team. Nevertheless, we're nervous of this place, because there's no air conditioning, and the weather, normally relatively mild in January, is 10 degrees above normal. 37 degrees! Settling in goes smoothly, and we get an early start on our first day. Finally, with the air circulating well and the rooms equipped with fans, we were reassured that the heat was bearable. Crowd management and the calling of patients by order are organized by local volunteers, all supervised by our super Denis, who makes sure that no one tries to sneak in uninvited. The registration of each patient in the computerized file is done by a local volunteer. The patient is thus in the circuit with a number that will follow him all the way. They will first meet Nathalie for a visual acuity test. They will then sit before Martine, who will take their intraocular pressure, and Christian, who will measure refraction with a portable auto-refractometer. Patients are then referred to Eye Health, where they can see Stéphanie or Élaine, accompanied by Dr. Diaw, Ophthalmologist and President of the ASV. In-depth fundus examinations, diagnosis and treatment are discussed for certain patients. If necessary, these patients will be referred to the ASV center in Saint-Louis for follow-up. Patients requiring glasses will see Marie-France or Francine for a second refraction to fine-tune the prescription. Finally, all patients will benefit from the care of Miha, Marie-Chantal, Sophie, Billy, Émile, Liette and Mamour, who, as the last step in the chain, will give a pair of prescription glasses if needed, as well as a pair of sunglasses to each and every one of them to protect their eyes from the powerful sun and hot, dry wind that causes many disabling eye diseases here. It was in Thillé Boubacar that we ended up seeing the most people in two days!
Mobile clinic report
Our volunteers are unanimous: the mobile clinic was a resounding success, and we totally achieved our targets, both in terms of the number of people seen and the type of clientele. In terms of numbers, we saw 1013 people! Far more than we'd hoped for! In terms of clientele type, it's undeniable that we saw people in need. Few had ever consulted a vision care professional before, and many left with significantly improved vision. Sadly, there was little to be done for some severely affected people, but there were small victories for those whose severely impaired vision we were able to improve just a little. Almost every case was a success... The light in the eyes, the smiles of satisfaction and the heartfelt thanks were commonplace for our dedicated volunteers.
Thanks to our partners, without whom this mission would not have been a success:
- Association Saint-Louisienne pour la Vue (ASV)
- Ministère de la Santé et des Affaires sociales of Senegal
- Ministère des Finances et du Budget of Senegal
Thanks also to all the organizations that supported IRIS Mundial in this large-scale project with donations of money, equipment or services: IRIS, Le Groupe Visuel, Alcon Canada, Centennial, Health Partners International of Canada and Groupe Vision Newlook.
A huge thank you and congratulations to our managers and to all the mission's volunteers for their outstanding dedication and generosity:
| Billy Saint Louis Christian Gagné Denis Allard Élaine Giasson Émile Beaudry Francine Lavallée Liette Bougie |
Marie-Chantal Hudon Marie-France Duguay Martine Gagnon Mihaela Mara Somogyi Nathalie Sureaud Sophie Bellavance Stéphanie Gagnon |
