ACS Cobham International School student, Ife Owoeye, aged 17, has recently returned from a journalism internship in Vietnam’s Hue Province with global sight-saving charity, Orbis.
The internship was designed to help generate awareness amongst young people of Orbis’s work, as well as encouraging students to engage with crucial world health issues. During their time in Vietnam, five students from ACS International Schools reported on the medical and community work supported by Orbis, by posting regular blogs, photos, and social media updates. They will also be making a short film covering visits to the homes of children who’d had eye operations.
Orbis works globally to transform lives in developing countries by providing the skills, resources and knowledge needed to deliver accessible quality eye care and eliminate avoidable blindness. The ACS International Schools Foundation has been a valued partner since 2000, sponsoring ACS pupils to undertake this demanding internship.
On their trip, the students visited Hue Eye Hospital and Hue Central Hospital to meet with doctors and nurses and to learn about paediatric eye services. Interviewing parents and observing children’s eye surgeries gave the students a real insight into Orbis’s fascinating work. The students also spent a day at the Friends of Hue Foundation Children's Shelter to experience a community eye care screening and time with surgery patients and their families who had been treated within the local hospital.
Ife Owoeye, student at ACS Cobham International School, said:
“It was truly inspiring to see firsthand the impact of Orbis’s work in Vietnam. Hearing about good deeds is one thing, but it was particularly powerful to see the patients in their element; be it at their home or just with their family.
“Orbis acts as the catalyst, making it possible for the doctors and nurses to be trained and for many patients to be treated, so they can keep moving on with their lives.”
Ife was joined on the trip by four other ACS students, Sonia Ali and Charline Muller from ACS Egham International School; Julie Lestrup from ACS Hillingdon International School; and Louise Danielle Aurelia from ACS Doha International School.
Kathryn Sweet, Head of Corporate Partnerships at Orbis UK, commented:
“ACS International Schools have partnered with Orbis UK for the 14th year to provide their students with a fantastic opportunity to see the world differently. Five outstanding candidates were selected for their ability to connect with our work and capture engaging stories, photos and videos which will educate others on their experience. They did a fantastic job and threw themselves into the task at hand.
Orbis is extremely grateful for this partnership with ACS as their support is even greater than their generous financial donation, which now exceeds £410,000, as their students continue to enthuse countless others to join the fight against avoidable blindness.”
In previous years, students have embarked on Orbis internships in many countries, including India, the Philippines, Panama and Mongolia.
To read the students’ blogs about their time in Vietnam, visit: http://gbr.orbis.org/news/uk/all
Article supplied by Helena Byrne Stevens
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here