Hi Everyone!

Thank you for taking the time to read about my fundraiser!

I’m currently a 3rd Year Optometry Student at Glasgow Caledonian University. This summer, myself and a few of my University classmates are embarking on a voluntary trip to South Africa for 4 weeks, providing Eyecare services to those who cannot readily access them via the “Phelophepa Train”.

We will be spending the first 2 weeks performing thorough eye tests on the train and examining for ocular pathology, where we will see somewhere between 15-20 patients a day.

The final 2 weeks will be spent in the University of South Africa, engaging in lectures/tutorials to expand our Optometry knowledge.

This once in a lifetime opportunity allows us to provide an important healthcare service to those who may not otherwise be able to access this support. Through our eye tests, we will help give these patients optimal vision and examine their ocular health status. We believe this will have a huge impact on their quality of life and allow them to enjoy activities with the best vision possible, which is so important to us.

Also, this opportunity will allow us to build our clinical skills, as some of the conditions we will be faced with will likely be end stage pathology that we are less likely to see back home.

Vitally, our communication abilities will also improve, as often there will be a strong language barrier between us and the patients.

I’m extremely grateful to have this opportunity, and believe it will provide me with invaluable clinical experiences, whilst also helping to change the lives of those less fortunate than us.

I’m looking to raise some money to help cover travel and accommodation fees whilst in Africa. I would be so grateful for any support you are able to provide to help me fund this amazing experience.

I can’t wait to begin this journey, and help make a difference to the wider community! I look forward to sharing my experiences with you all along the way!

Thanks so much,

Amelia x