ORBIS – Flying Eye Hospital Mission to Panama – August 2013

ORBIS flies missions all over the world to

operate on eye patients that will bring the

maximum teaching value to local eye

doctors and nurses who observe the latest

procedures, equipment and techniques

We arrive in beautiful Panama City with a team

of approximately 50 doctors, nurses,

technicians, administrators,

volunteers, donors, etc.

Prior to the start of a Flying Eye Hospital visit, ORBIS

works with local partner hospitals to pre-select

patients whose conditions are relevant to that

program’s focus. Selected patients are then screened

by ORBIS Volunteer Faculty members at the program

site. Local eye healthcare professionals maintain

oversight of patients before, during and after surgery.

Doctors and nurses meet

patients one at a time to

evaluate which eye cases will

bring the greatest teaching

value to the local medical

community

When the patients are

selected for surgery,

they are also given a

thorough exam to

assure each is cleared

for the planned surgical

procedure

Jack McHale was our host for this

mission to Panama. His passion for

and personal connection with these

patients is wonderful to watch

Kids naturally

bond with each

other as each

waits to be

screened for

possible surgery

over the next

several days

Administrators explain the subtle aspects of

working with hospitals and the local medical

communities in countries all over the world

Here a cameraman

with the film

industry’s hottest

video camera

company “Red”

shows a potential

patient all the

amazing features of

his camera. “Red”

cameras have been

used to shoot feature

film block-busters

such as The Hobbit,

Thor, Star Trek,

Great Gatsby and

numerous others.

Local television news crews

also interview potential

patients and their families to

spread the word regarding

ORBIS missions

Volunteers provide gifts

for the children to occupy

their time and bring

smiles to their faces

Patients with endless conditions travel

from all parts of Panama hoping to be

selected for corrective procedures

Priority is given to children,

whenever possible, and to

patients with medical issues

in both eyes and those that

present the greatest

teaching value for the local

doctors.

On this mission, the

screening process

uncovered one patient with

an eye disease that had

only been studied in their

medical training, but no

doctor had ever seen in the

real world. Accordingly,

these missions sometimes

provide teaching

opportunities for ORBIS

doctors as well.

These young students had traveled from the United

Kingdom to observe the entire ORBIS teaching

method as part of their educational process

And, of course, kids will be

kids. Here a young potential

patient plays with a computer

during her evaluation

Doctors take numerous pictures of

patients to help catalogue cases during

the selection process. Pictures can then

be used as part of the teaching process

between doctors as they make their

surgical choices.

The youngest kids do

not know what is

happening, but their

lives are about to be

changed forever, if

they are fortunate

enough to be one of

the selected cases.

Within 24 hours, they

may be given the most

amazing gift of sight!

The DC-10 aircraft has been pre-positioned in Panama at a

remote airfield. It brings with it all essential services such as

water purification, electrical power, oxygen systems, etc.

When traveling, the

aircraft must carry

onboard all essential

services and be 100%

self-sufficient. After

landing at its destination,

each essential service

module is deployed from

its storage location to the

tarmac and operationally

activated.

As it is

August in

Panama, it is

extremely hot

and humid

outside the

aircraft, but

inside it is

perfectly

temperature

controlled.

This DC-10 is the oldest airframe of its type still flying. It has

been converted into a full surgical hospital with all required

support systems and complete teaching hospital

technological capabilities

In the 48-seat classroom at the front of the plane, local eye healthcare

professionals gather for lectures, discussions and live broadcasts of

surgical procedures being performed in the Flying Eye Hospital

operating room. If needed, surgeries can also be broadcast to an

additional classroom outside the aircraft, for instance, at a nearby

hospital. Large numbers of trainees observe the surgeries and ask

questions of the operating surgeons via a two-way audio-visual

system.

Several live interpreters

provide real time

translation into various

languages as part of the

teaching process.

Full technical support is

provided aboard the

aircraft with a state-of-

the-art, two-way close

circuit, video training

system

Video cameras inside microscopes in the surgical suite

broadcast close-up real time video feeds of the procedures

so doctors can train large groups of people while operating

In another part of the aircraft, other training

equipment and systems are made available

to local medical professionals

Here doctors are taught new surgical techniques

using training systems, many of which are

donated to ORBIS

Nurses intensively watch the latest medical procedures so they can

update their skills in support of local eye doctors

Towards the rear of the aircraft is the recovery room. Patients are also

staged here to be readied for pre-operative procedures.

The surgical suite itself has state-of-the-art

technology to provide the best eye care to

patients and provide a teaching forum.

Young patients are prepped

for surgery and the nursing

staff gets the operating room

ready for each new teaching

procedure

Older patients are also prepped for surgery having been selected

for their particular eye case teaching value

The bedside manner

of these fantastic

doctors is incredible

as they ease each

patient’s concern

about the impending

surgery.

These ORBIS doctors

donate their own

personal time to

participate in these

teaching missions.

One doctor on the

Panama mission had

been on over 100

ORBIS missions.

As the surgical suite is readied,

anesthesiologists prepare their

equipment

And the surgery and teaching

process begins.

Extremely delicate

procedures and years of

surgical experience guides

each patient through their

specific surgery

This is when

everything is

interconnected

and the magic

of ORBIS is in

full motion

So, the lucky selected

patients move swiftly

through the entire

process from being

prepped for surgery

Into the recovery room

with their families

After surgery, patients

are wheeled back into

the recovery room and

parents and other family

members are

immediately reunited

with their loved one

The “RED” videographer

prepares to enter the surgical

suite for some close-up videos.

Many sponsors support

ORBIS. Omega sent the

current “James Bond”

Daniel Craig on an

ORBIS Mission.

Daniel was humbled to see the phenomenal work

done by ORBIS saving sight globally

After the surgeries, the

doctors and nurses take

a break before getting

ready for the next wave

of patients.

The bond between the

medical staff is written on

their faces.

After a short recovery

process, the patients are

prepared to be moved

from the air base to the

hospital

Each patient is carefully

assisted down the stairs

from the aircraft into a

waiting ambulance for

transport

One of the many

consistent themes at

ORBIS is to provide each

child with a teddy bear

Teddy bears are seen all

over the aircraft

And bears are hidden

away in back packs for

transport home for the

kids when they fully

awaken

With surgical bandages

removed, these kids are

starting to see clearly for

the first time in their lives

We at Zodiac Aerospace

are proud to have

supported ORBIS’ new

MD-10 aircraft with

donations of Galley

Insert and Oxygen

Systems Equipment.