Record Numbers Participate in January Live Classroom in East Africa
Cure Blindness Project's January Live Classroom in East Africa last month saw record numbers of ophthalmology residents participating in intensive training. The program, which included lectures and hands-on learning, aims to prepare residents for their boards and establish lasting solutions for eye care.
Teaching and transferring skills to in-country partners will lead to sustainable eye health solutions. Last month, Cure Blindness Project hosted its most well-attended Live Classroom to date. Live Classroom is an intensive ophthalmology resident review course that prepares residents to take their respective boards.
Live Classroom supplements Virtual Classroom, an 18-month curriculum with lectures taught by both international and in-country expert faculty based on the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) Basic Clinical Science Course.
In January, 161 total residents from Ethiopia, Rwanda and for the first time Somaliland gathered in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia for four days of intensive training and review that included both lectures and hands-on learning. This represented seven Ethiopian residency programs, one Somaliland residency program, and one Rwandan residency program for a total of nine ophthalmology residency programs.
January’s Live Classroom used ten microscopes simultaneously during a glaucoma resident wet lab, a nod to both resident’s appetite to participate and Cure Blindness Project’s ability to scale to meet this desire. The session included seven wet lab stations and involved eight glaucoma specialists. In total, 33 senior glaucoma residents participated, representing Gondar University, Jimma University, Hawassa University, Addis Ababa University and St. Paul’s University.
“Cure Blindness has the power to bring in teachers to the classroom. We bring the curriculum, the reading schedule, and homework. We support residents to prepare for exams and pay exam fees when needed,” explains Dr. Ashiyana Nariani, Senior Technical Advisor on Ophthalmic Training and Research for Cure Blindness Project. “The wet labs allow residents to practice before surgery. We provide that. We also provide the infrastructure at the wet labs and surgical training at outreaches.”
“When you talk about Cure Blindness Project’s impact, to say we will have such an influence on so many, to see the interactions among participants and to know ten years from now that all the folks in the room will be their respective country’s eye care leaders, it’s very special.”
January’s participants agree that the learnings are invaluable. In post-surveys, Live Classroom received a net promoter score of 100 with residents writing:
"This glaucoma wet lab workshop has been very helpful, and we thank God for this opportunity. We also deeply appreciate your efforts, especially traveling such a long distance to assist us. Thank you very much!"
"It was superb, I am glad I was a part of it."
"This wet lab allowed me to practice some procedures that I have not yet practiced in my residency."
Future plans include adding more residency programs to allow residents from Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda to participate. “Virtual Classroom can scale up immediately if funding becomes available for more electronic keys (used to unlock curriculum),” says Nariani.
Nearly 200 residency program directors have unanimously confirmed the mandatory participation in this adjunct education for all of the residents at each of the sessions. Live Classroom supplements learnings of Virtual Classroom.
