Previously Blind Bob Sleigh Hero Wins Gold Truly it must be amazing to look back on one’s career and realise that among its many highlights, you have contributed to your country’s gold medal collection – and without even being a world class athlete. Add into the equation restoring the sight of a champion Olympian who goes on to win the first four-man gold medal for his country in 62 years and you have the making of a national hero. This…
Patsy And The Vet I have been feeling sad recently –not only as in Seasonal Affective Disorder (although this winter seems never ending); but also due to the loss of a much loved pet. Dear little Patsy was not a conventionally handsome cat, but what he lacked in good looks he more than made up for in personality. He was simply a delight to have around – from his first day, when he wandered in through the cat flap and…
The Patient Patient Since his childhood in the Kashmir region of Pakistan, Menir Ahmed suffered from poor eye sight – at the age of ten he was extremely short sighted (-9 or -8). His youth was blighted by all the inconvenience associated with wearing glasses so thick that they affected his peripheral vision and dashed any sporting aspirations he had. As an adult, Menir read about Laser Eye Surgery and began his painstaking research into the subject. However, despite his…
Dr. Dan The Miracle Worker The London Vision Clinic’s Thanksgiving Celebration 2009 provided many reasons to say “thank you”. The party was held at the Dali Universe exhibition just beside the iconic London Eye and patients and their partners could admire the works of the eccentric Spanish painter as they mingled with the 35 members of staff and compared notes and experiences with each other. Dr Dan and his saxophone, together with fellow jazz musicians from the 606 Club where…
Saying Thank You – The American Way The American custom of celebrating Thanksgiving is an event that in Britain barely registers on our radar. Falling as it does a mere four weeks before Christmas, we feel as if we have enough on our plates when the last Thursday in November arrives. If we think about the Thanksgiving holiday at all, it is probably combined with the thought that we will soon be sitting around our own table groaning under the…
Happy Birthday… And Why You’re Never Too Old Recently I have found myself thinking a lot about birthdays. This is probably because my birthday calendar (a legacy from my Dutch years and a truly vital piece of organisational equipment) is jam packed full of names of friends and family at this time of year. I have also been spending hours (well, almost) browsing around card shops looking for that perfect humorous/elegant/nostalgic/loving message to send to my nearest and dearest. In…
Binning The Alice Band Of Glasses Returning to the scenario of sitting next to someone famous in the waiting room of the London Vision Clinic…. Should one put down one’s reading matter and offer to make them a cup of tea? Or would that appear too ingratiating for comfort? I would have to contend that, in this situation, there can be no fixed agenda… it all depends on… well every thing from pre-op nerves to general feelings of sociability or…
From Emu Creek To Harley Street Although during her career, Dani had acquired a wide range of nursing qualifications and experiences, she had never worked with eyes before so, in April 2007, when she accepted the position at the London Vision Clinic, she found herself on another fascinating learning curve. Recently promoted to “Senior Nurse”, Dani ‘s responsibilities include helping explain to patients pre and post-operative procedures. She and the other nurses are on hand to help calm nerves…
Meeting Senior Nurse Dani Nursing has to be one of the most varied careers in existence: where and how nurses choose to practice their skills is only limited by their imagination. A shining example of this is the London Vision Clinic´s senior nurse, Dani Barrett. Her professional qualifications have taken her from the tiny Australian outback village of Emu Creek to London’s Harley Street via a journey that would even make ER scriptwriters question the story line as being too…
If Life Gives You Lemons… Ever since he was a little boy Paul Ryb has been the sort of person for whom the phrase: “If life gives you lemons you make lemonade”, does not go far enough. Despite, summing up the message of making the most of a bad situation, Paul’s personality urges a deeper and more analytical approach to the lemonade mix; leading to research – for example – not only into lemonade recipes, but also the history of…
