ORBIS Flying Eye Hospital in Surabaya, Indonesia in March 2012. Photo by Geoff Bugbee.

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In March 2012, ORBIS completed a three-week Flying Eye Hospital skills-exchange program at Dr. Soetomo Teaching Hospital designed to meet the needs of the Indonesian Ophthalmology Association. The program covered the leading causes of treatable and preventable blindness including cataract, childhood blindness, corneal and retinal diseases.

During this program, ORBIS volunteer faculty member, Dr. Jonathan Song, treated nine year-old Rizki Alfandi who suffered from a traumatic eye injury causing a cataract to develop.

“Traumatic cataracts are actually quite difficult to perform because many times you don’t know what you’re getting in to. In Rizki’s case, I choose different techniques that most local trainees and doctors here in Indonesia are not taught — so this was useful case,” said Dr. Song.