In May, the Eyes and Eyelids docs left behind a wet and wild Auckland for the wet and wild, but somewhat warmer Cook Islands. Dr Paul Rosser has made this journey 28 times over 30 years, becoming an honorary Cook Islander in the process. This is my 19th trip, after my first visit as a baby-faced registrar in 2002. We were joined by optometrists Richard Johnson (17th visit) and Theresa Slaten (6th visit) and Cook Islands veteran John Veale. Eyes and Eyelids ophthalmic technician Treve Dromgool (5th visit) provided technical assistance, while registrar Dr Haya Al-Ani joined for her second trip. All in all, that’s more than 100 cumulative years of providing eyecare in the Cook Islands and helping develop local eyecare resources.
Between visits, local eye nurse Doris Taripo provides outstanding year-round eyecare. She also organises our trip logistics, assisted by the local administration team. Now competent in YAG capsulotomies, a focus for our visit this year was training her to perform intravitreal injections. The clinic is well-equipped with a retinal and YAG laser, so most diabetic eye disease patients can be treated locally.
While the medical and surgical New Zealand eye teams are based in Rarotonga, the optometrists and local nurse visit the smaller islands to identify patients who would benefit from further surgical or medical treatment, who then travel across for further evaluation. Theresa became very familiar with the small island of Mitiaro (population: fewer than 160) this year, when flight schedules meant she was there for four days and managed to see 80% of its residents!
The clinic sees mostly cataract patients and those with diabetic eye disease, with some general cases too. Extracapsular cataract extraction is the preferred technique, with Paul having performed an estimated 1,400 surgeries over his three decades of visits. This year, 64 cataracts were performed over eight-and-a-half days. Since lockdown meant we couldn’t visit in 2020 or 2021, we will return for a week later this year to clear the backlog.
