Supported by the Rotary Club of Kew
See the pics here
See the slide show here
The project
To send a team of professionals assisted by volunteers to screen, prescribed spectacles and to perform eye surgery on the villagers in Sumba. This is an ongoing commitment – 2009 was the Third of which we hope will be an annual project.
The Visiting Team
Dr Mark F Ellis Ophthalmic Surgeon and team leader (Royal Vic Eye and Ear)
Dr Terry Ong Ophthalmic Surgeon (Royal Vic Eye and Ear)
Sr Sue Anderson Ophthalmic Nurse
Sr Jan Parker Ophthalmic Nurse (Royal Vic Eye and Ear)
Mr Peter Lewis Optometrist
Mr Peter Stewart Optometrist (Rotary Club of Kew)
Mr Trevor Mackey Rotary Volunteer
Mrs Janet Ellis Volunteer
Mrs Anne Lewis Volunteer
The Local Team
Dr Claus Bogh Malaria Program Director, Sumba Foundation
Ms Rainy Octora Sumba Foundation
Dr Ulrich Sumba Foundation
Mrs Elizabeth Kata Medical Director
Total Budget - $40,000
Where is Sumba?
Is in the Indonesian province of Nusa Tenggara Timur (East Nusa Tenggara) consists of over 550 islands, but is dominated by three main islands namely Flores, Sumba and West Timor.
• 11,000 square kilometres 600,000 population.
• Poorest and less-developed region of Indonesia.
• Closer to Darwin than Melbourne is to Brisbane
Made possible by
• Glenferrie and Kew Rotary Clubs
• Optometry Giving Sight
• Royal Australasian College of Surgeons
• Sumba Foundation
• Carey Baptist Grammar School
• Private donations
• Jetstar – excess baggage allowance
Achievements 2009
• 640 people screened
• 480 pairs of spectacles prescribed
• 85 operations –
• 66 Cataract Extractions
• 13 Pterygiums removals and grafts
• 3 Entropion repairs
• 3 Posterior capusular fibrosis removals
If your Rotary club would like to contribute to this very worthy project contact
Mark Ellis - mellis@connexus.net.au
Peter Stewart - highonvision@bigpond.com
Trevor Mackey – tm.bm@bigpond.com
Executive Summary by Dr Mark F Ellis
This is the second eye trip to West Sumba and was conducted in cooperation with the Sumba Foundation. Dr Claus Bogh of the Sumba Foundation was able to facilitate the team’s travel, accommodation and officiating of our work in West Sumba.
Again, Jetstar waivered the excess luggage fee, allowing us to take an extra 270 kg of supplies and equipment (29 boxes) with us and bring back 13 boxes back to Melbourne.
With the Sumba Foundation’s cooperation, we were fast tracked though Bali customs with no problems. The equipment was cared for by the staff of the Sumba foundation overnight and loaded on the flight to Sumba the following day. We stayed at the Vira Bali Hotel that night. There was also the $25 USD and 150,000 rupiahs for departure and arrival taxes at the airport.
Once on Sumba, we were driven to the hospital to unload and set up the microscopes and other equipment. We were then driven to our hotel – the “Mona Lisa” approximately 3 km out of Waikabubak. This is the same hotel as last year. There was a mixture of rooms some with air conditioning, which wasn’t really required since the weather was quite pleasant at night...
Dr Mark F Ellis
Team Leader – Sumba Eye Program 2009