Be happy be productive

It all started with a small job for Sunitha that paid INR 3500 a month, valued about USD 110 then, about 25 years ago. She was happy to begin her first job. Since it was the first time spending her ‘own money’ rather than her parents’, she was even more excited. All that she wanted was to impress her boss. So, she worked extra hours. Her official duty hours was 10.5 hours a day. However, whenever there was a need she worked for nearly 11 to 11.5 hours. This turned out to be almost 3-4 days a week during most of the weeks. In India, a workweek is Monday to Saturday. She worked for 3 weeks in a row which included Sunday duties.

All this slogging was for no ‘extra’ money but was to create a good impression. She indeed made a good impression, but, in the process, did she realize she was being exploited by her colleagues and her boss? No. By then she was branded as a very nice, compliant, adaptable person, all of which she was. Unknowingly that became her self-fulfilling prophecy. What accompanied was a similar situation at home. Her husband knew how to get things done from her, how to exploit her finances when he was laid off, and finally exploit her love for her family. This was when she started to do some introspection.

Do all these past experiences mean that she could never be herself? No. She spent her free time pondering her next step to progress in life. It was during this time of her career that she came across multiple situations that only she could handle and troubleshoot. As a result, she realized her worth and acknowledged that her biggest strength was handling difficult situations. She came to be known as someone who can take care of challenging customers, staff, and vendors and was frequently consulted to handle them during tough situations.

Sunitha believes that no knowledge is worthwhile if it is not shared among others. She started creating more people who can perform like her and she eventually developed a passion for training others; she started conducting more formal training sessions and ensured that those who attended the programs carried with them some strong, motivating and thought-provoking messages that would be of help in their career. With time she recognized that trainers must keep themselves updated with the latest aspects happening around them. She continued to get herself trained to deliver better presentations so that she could convey her messages more effectively to her audience. This not only facilitated her in bringing about better speeches but also improved her self-confidence.

Sunitha felt that this achievement was not enough and wanted more. She understood that making money, creating a brand for herself, and slogging full time was not what she wanted. That was not her. Spending time sparingly with family had always been a lacuna in her life and that suddenly became her top priority. She cared less about creating an impression and spent more and more quality time with family. Her life started transforming into a beautiful experience. There were more vacations than ever before; and more dinners and movies. To her surprise, her sense of responsibility remained unchanged and her performance at work was unaffected and she continued to function well. She understood the importance of providing work-life balance among her team. They started filling in for each other magically during times of need. This, in turn, resulted in better outcomes. Management was very happy to note the progress of her entire department and acknowledged her sincere efforts.

Lessons learned from Sunitha’s story

• Never try to impress anyone with the price of compromising your own happiness
• Be nice and accommodative but never let people exploit you for what you are
• Understand your strengths and make use them to the maximum
• Never give up your passion; work hard to pursuing it further
• Keep yourself updated to sustain in your field of work
• Time with family is more valuable than money earned
• Being happy in personal life contributes to better productivity at work

One of the many reasons why most of the successful businessmen and senior management professionals sustain and continue to grow in their respective fields is that they understand the importance of work-life balance not only for themselves but also for their team. They value service delivery rather than placing pressure on their team.

To conclude, the message passed here is ‘A happy person is a productive worker’!

A Kind Soul

    It was just like any other day on the 11th of June, 2019. The morning alarm played the usual melody into my ears at 6:00 am. The first thing I did after I swiped the screen to switch off the alarm was browsing through my emails. This had become my routine ever since I returned from Canada in May 2018. I never miss out on an email or a text as my phone has always been a part of me. If it pings, I am sure to peek immediately. But it is always in the silent mode at night from 9:30 PM. One thing that Canada taught me was early supper and early to bed habits. It was more than a year since I returned from Canada, but I was continuing to receive regular updates from the University of Montreal (UDEM). I lived in Montreal for about thirteen months but my French comprehension is close to nothing, so I always use Google translate to understand the content of emails received in French. It was when I was trying to read one such email I came across the above photo of Umit, the picture of a guy with a lovely smile. I only saw the year 2019 and étudiant en maitrise laboratoire des neurosciences de la vision. I immediately assumed that Umit had successfully completed his masters and was happy for him. I truly enjoyed that moment which unfortunately lasted only for a few seconds. What Google translate showed next came to me like a thunderbolt and shook me out of my bed.

A screenshot of Google Translation 

    This was the phrase above his photo - 

    "C'est avec une grande tristesse que nous annonçons les décès de deux étudiants de l'École, leurs départs nous ont profondément affectés et nous offrons toutes nos sympathies à leur famille respective."

    And the translation read - 

"It is with great sadness that we announce the deaths of two students of the School, their departures have deeply affected us and we extend our sympathies to their respective families."

    With my heartbeat raising, I quickly switched back to the picture on my email and noticed that it was written 1992 - 2019. So, it was real, Umit was no more. The photo of the other student in the email was of Sara Hmouz who I didn't know. I immediately sent the above image to my friends and batchmates via the WhatsApp group. They did not know until I told them. Everyone was shocked. After a little digging, we found that he passed away more than a month ago due to a complication of congenital illness.

    I wondered why I was heartbroken to know this. I did not know Umit personally. He was not my friend at UDEM. It was just that his desk was behind mine in the study room, and every time he entered the room, he smiled and wished. He had a fancy arrangement on his table, with a custom desktop computer and a few books. All other desks in the room were either empty or barely filled with sticky notes and occasionally a few books. Other than just wishing good-mornings, hellos, and byes there was not much interaction with him. Then, why did I feel shattered? Why was I crying? My memories went back to the first week at UDEM. 

    I was forty-three years of age in September 2016 when I joined Masters in Vision Science -Visual Impairment and Rehabilitation program at UDEM, and did not have absolutely any previous experience living in any country other than India, had no friends in Montreal, and more than everything had lost my beloved son about a year ago. Moreover, it was more than twenty years since I went to a formal college. My brain was completely rewired to a practice mode from a learning form. Reading the syllabus, the examination schedules, and seeing French everywhere around was overwhelming for me. My only companion those first days was my laptop. 

    I think it was during the middle of the first week when I was struggling to connect to the health library website through the UDEM WiFi at the Jean Brilliant campus. When I enquired, I was guided to an IT technician who had her office in one of the many rooms. After a lot of struggle walking around the deserted look-alike corridors with no one to guide or even to ask, I managed to reach her room. I don't remember her name but I do remember how approachable she was. She apologized for not being very good in English, which I found funny considering my poor French. She walked with me to the study room and the moment she saw Umit, all that she did was raise her eyebrows. 

    "You have Umit! You didn't have to come to me. He is the best in computers," she quickly introduced him and left.

    Umit was such a lovable boy. His approach was kind and his speaking was very sweet. He carefully took my laptop and checked the WiFi settings, did everything he could but couldn't fix the problem. I was worried if my laptop was too outdated. However, he reassured me by describing all the advanced features on my laptop in a simple language that I could understand. I also remember how amazed he was to see that the touch-enabled display of my laptop. But in the end, he felt bad that he couldn't be of help. So he didn't stop there. After checking the UDEM website, he contacted the IT person on the main campus and explained everything in French. He then asked me to take my laptop to them and was sure that I will be able to connect to the WiFi after that. Although the problem wasn't fixed, the way he made me feel is something that I remember to this date, the support that he provided to a newcomer, the reassurance that he gave when I was tensed, and the kindness that he exhibited is unforgettable. I wish he was still there. 

    Umit you were a great soul gone too soon. The world misses you. But you will always be remembered by me who lives on the other side of the earth! 

Rest in peace, Umit

Veena Rao

Cataract.. Care & Act

Mr. Swami (name changed) visited Jaya Eye Care where he was sure to find a solution to all his vision problems. His very close friend had strongly recommended the center. Mr. Swami was an interesting personality. Soon after he entered he announced, “I heard you have one-stop-solution for my eyes. I am a very sweet person, I am diabetic!”. He stole everyone’s heart from the time he stepped in. He was happy to see the welcoming staff and the center’s ambiance. He cracked a lot of jokes and was a center of attention. Not only did he have fun but he also made other patients’ visits memorable.

After a detailed eye examination that included a vision test, refraction, Intra Ocular Pressure measurement, anterior segment evaluation, and retinal examination, he was diagnosed to have a cataract. He is a known diabetic for about 5 years and his blood sugar levels are under good control. A detailed retinal examination revealed normal retina in both eyes. However, he was educated about possible problems that can occur in the eye due to diabetes especially if it was not under control. He was applauded for his care about his own health. Mr. Swami had no clue that diabetes could also affect his eyes. He was glad that Jaya Eye Care educated him on that aspect!

Mr. Swami was counseled about cataract and its treatment. Again, he never had a clue that it can be treated at this stage. He had assumed that he will have to wait until it was ‘ripe’ to undergo surgery. The same myth was reinforced by the optician who had earlier sold the progressive glasses to Mr. Swami. Jaya Eye Care believes in a consultative selection of best Intra Ocular Lens (IOL) meaning, it believes in understanding the lifestyle of its patients before recommending the type of IOL rather than ‘selling’ a type of IOL.

A detailed interview was taken to understand his lifestyle. “I have quite a busy schedule. I travel a lot. Luckily my driver takes me around. Chennai’s Sun really bothers me. I always wonder how the Uber eats and Swiggy motorcyclists spend the whole day supplying food to those who don’t cook at home! Ah! When I go out during nights, the dazzling lights from the cars really bother me. Talking about technology, these days it is very convenient. Many years ago, I remember how I used to do all my banking activities by visiting my bank, stand in long ques, eagerly wait for that ‘Ding’ sound so that it is my turn to withdraw money. Thanks to online banking, I can do all my banking using my laptop. I spend a lot of my time on computers, mobile and I enjoy watching TV. I attend ‘Kacheri’ at Narada Gana Saba at least once in a week. Of late, I have trouble driving, sunlight bothers me, I have trouble working for long hours on my computer. I recently spent almost forty thousand rupees for my progressive lenses. The optician said it was the best that would suit my lifestyle. Unfortunately, it is not helping me” said Mr. Swami.

Based on Mr. Swami’s lifestyle and Optical Biometry measurements, it was concluded that he would do well with Micro-Incision Cataract Surgery with implantation of Aberration-Free, UV blocking, Toric Multifocal IOL. This IOL has the advantage of resulting in a good vision for distance, near & intermediate by its inbuilt optical properties, and correcting astigmatism.

Surgery was done within a couple of days and Mr. Swami was surprised that he spent only about two hours in the center and could also get his other eye operated within two more days. He was extremely happy with his visual recovery which was just 4-5 days. He is very happy to be able to see without his glasses. He continues to be a cheerful person and manages his lifestyle with ease and without any more strain!

Jaya Eye Care is happy that Mr.Swami ‘Cared and Acted’ about his cataract and continues to live his active life!!

Beware mobile users!

Beware mobile users!!!

In this era of the digital world, the biggest question concerning our eyes is, “Will extensive use of mobile phones affect my eyes?” and the answer is “YES!” While mobile companies have been working really hard to market new models that have a better display, large screen, blue light filter, antireflection screens, etc., it becomes rather confusing to decide if or not to use mobile phones. A while ago, people were concerned about the radiations that affect one’s health with messages traveling across the globe about how we are not supposed to put our cell phones in our shirt pocket that would affect our heart and not place it next to our pillow while we sleep that would cause sleep disturbances or brain cancer. However, presently with the global increase in the number of people wearing glasses, it has become an utmost need of the hour to spread awareness about the proper use of mobile phones. The following points have to be kept in mind while using mobile phones.

1.       Distance – Longer the distance, lesser the eye strains. Ideally, it should be placed at a distance of more than 40 cms from the face

2.       Duration – Longer the duration greater the eye hurts and results in eye strain followed by a spasm of eye muscles.  This will result in visual disturbances during near work. Take at least a 30-seconds breaks for every half an hour by looking at something far distance

3.       Position – Never bend too much while looking at the phone; especially avoid looking at it while lying on your belly. By doing so you not only strain your neck but also give way to increase in refractive error

4.       Blinking – It is important to blink your eyes frequently so that there is an equal distribution of tears on your eyes. Normally we should blink at least 10-12 times in a minute but when we are engrossed in an activity that requires more concentration, we forget to blink. This results in the evaporation of tears resulting in dry eyes. Dry-eyes cause a burning sensation, increased tearing, itching and irritation. Prolonged dry eyes will damage the cornea and hence will affect vision.

5.       Font size – Always make sure you are able to read the font without any extra effort at a distance of 40 cms. If not increase the font size such that it is readable at that distance.

6.       Brightness – Make sure the auto-brightness adjustment is enabled on your phone. This ensures the brightness is optimum with respect to the surrounding light.

7.       Blue light filter – Make sure the blue light filter is on. Those who use mobile phones for prolonged periods and are experiencing eye strain will be able to appreciate instant relief when they activate this filter. Apart from eye strain, increased exposure to blue light is known to affect ganglion cells on the retina that would allow age-related retinal degeneration to set in at a much younger age. If the phone does not have a blue light filter feature, the same effect can be made by using special glasses that filter blue light.

8.       Surrounding light – Many people have a habit of looking at their mobiles during night hours with the room lights off with a good intention of not disturbing others who are sleeping in the room. However, this practice is not ideal as this does not allow the diffusing of blue light resulting in the harmful effects of blue light exposure.

Mini Scleral Device (MSD) and Corneo Scleral Device (CSD) – A boon to those who have Keratoconus and similar corneal irregularities!

On a bright sunny day, Manas (name changed) aged 35 years, walked into Jaya Eye Care Centre for an eye checkup. He had this strange mannerism; he was seen squeezing his eyes while watching TV in the waiting hall and was frequently blinking his eyes. This appeared more like winking as he was closing his left eye more than right. Any non-medical person could tell that something was wrong with his eyes and surely he was not comfortable.

It appeared that he had something in his eye that was bothering him. Upon examination, it was found that he had Keratoconus. There was a small corneal hard contact lens on his left eye, which explains his winking!

Manas had known about his condition since he was 13 years old and has ever since living with seeing things distorted. He remembers rubbing his eyes a lot during his childhood, most of the time hiding behind curtains because he was asked not to.

“My mom had eyes all over her head!” he recalls. He remembers visiting multiple hospitals, eye clinics, and optical shops with his mom in search of the best glasses. “More than me my mom was desperate to make me read clearly what my teacher wrote on the blackboard” he claimed.

As a child, he never could enjoy the beauty of nature, read storybooks which he was very fond of or enjoy watching TV. He was extremely sensitive to sunlight as well as artificial lights during nights. He used to love playing a traditional Tamil Nadu game called “Noorankuchi” that requires concentration and clear vision.

However, because of his poor vision, he was never able to win this game and soon had to give up playing. His other favorites were carrom board game and badminton all of which he gave up as he grew older. At school, he managed to learn well because of his sharp listening skills and was always good at his studies. He also completed a degree in Physiotherapy with a first-class score.

When he was about 23 years old, he had to undergo a corneal surgery called Deep Anterior Lamellar Keratoplasty (DALK) in his left eye as the keratoconus had progressed significantly and even the best institutes could not find a suitable contact lens that would stay on his eye.

After surgery, his vision improved well with glass correction. However, it was nothing close to normal. He had always seen ghosting of images even with the best optical correction. “Probably that is why I am not scared of ghosts” he humored.

A few months had passed and by this time the keratoconus in his right eye progressed with scar formation and unfortunately, no contact lens was fitting on his right eye. This is when he decided to try a contact lens on his left eye so he could manage his everyday activities with one eye. As he had assumed, his vision in left did improve well with contact lens, and from that day onwards he has been seeing only with his left eye.

But there was irritation with this lens and he was always living with a fear of losing the lens. He almost gave up the thought of seeing with both eyes together.

Ever since he was in college, he has been passionate about driving. He proudly announced, “I have driven all cars. You name it and I have driven it! But only in broad daylight. I had never imagined driving cars to travel long distances with my eye condition”.

About 6 months ago he was very thoughtful about why his life has become this, why he has been depending on others to travel and why can’t he think of driving again. His desperation took a positive turn when he found that MSDs could be a solution for him following an internet search. That was when he visited Jaya Eye Care Centre and he was surprised to note that he was given the same option to try MSDs. He most willing agreed to try them.

For those who don’t know, Keratoconus is a condition where there is progressive thinning of the cornea in both eyes. This results in the cornea re-shaping itself like a ‘cone’. Hence it got its name, Kerato meaning cornea, and Conus meaning cone. Usually, one eye is affected more than the other eye.

Typically, such patients have distorted vision due to the presence of ‘irregular astigmatism’. Many other conditions can result in irregular astigmatism. Some of them are Pellucid marginal degeneration, Keratoglobus, Peter’s Anomaly, Steven Johnson’s syndrome, Ectasia in post corneal refractive surgery, Post Radial Keratotomy, Post corneal keratoplasty, Post INTACs, Post C3R treatment, Post-traumatic corneal scarring, Post healed corneal ulcer, Post healed chemical injury, etc.

Most of the time such patients are fitted with rigid contact lenses to correct irregular astigmatism. However, many patients drop out from wearing them due to a lack of comfort with such hard/rigid lenses. This is the reason why Jaya Eye Care Centre has adopted the latest method to help such patients to see well and enjoy comfort at the same time. It is called Mini Scleral Device (MSD) and the latest in this category is the Corneo Scleral Device (CSD). Both look almost the same except that the CSDs are a little smaller than the MSDs.

Manas was offered a trial of MSD and CSDs. The moment he was fitted with the Mini Scleral Device in both eyes he instantly exclaimed: “wow, I never thought I could see so well with both my eyes again in my life!”. He was so excited to read the vision chart with ease and watch TV programs in the waiting hall.

As part of the routine trial, he was taken outside the hospital to view the real world with the CSDs. As soon as he spotted his wife at a distance (who was approaching the hospital to pick him up) he shouted, “you look great in that sari!”, and she blushed. She was so happy that he could recognize her from that distance. It was indeed a memorable moment!
After spending the whole day with us he decided to place an order for CSDs. They were ready within a couple of days and he returned for training. Within a few trials, he quickly learned how to wear and remove them. We were amazed to see his methodical approach in practicing CSD wear and removal. The first thing that he noticed with his CSDs was that the ghosting of letters had almost vanished and he exclaimed: “I will no longer be haunted by them!!”.

Most of all Jaya Eye Care Centre is very happy that Manas is leading a normal life like others. He bought a car and is driving now with ease both during day and night. He can identify facial expressions from a distance and able to react to them as well. “Small things but a big change in my life”, says Manas thankfully!

We asked Manas, “What do you have to say to others who have a similar eye problem like yours?”. He replied, “Never lose hope. Understand your eye condition, look for options and approach the correct center”, and with a pause, he exclaimed, “Jaya Eye Care is one such center!”

MSD and CSD are the advanced non-invasive method to correct conditions with corneal irregularities. This is in the form of a curved transparent lens in which you fill saline and strategically place on the cornea such that the fluid interface corrects the optical irregularities hence, resulting in sharp eyesight.

Currently, this is the only non-surgical method available to give full vision with the best comfort even in most extreme corneal irregularities. These devices are easy to wear and remove with appropriate training and practice. They last for about 2 to 3 years, or even longer if the eye condition has not progressed much and with proper maintenance.

Emotionally, patient is right!

Often we come across surgeons who complain that their patients refuse to accept the outcome of the surgery. On the other hand, the patients grumble that the surgeons were not compassionate and gentle in handling their emotions.

Imagine the very fact that the patient has come to the surgeon is because of the feeling of ‘Trust’ that he has on him. And so the duty of the surgeon is to connect, interact and explain in detail the possible outcome of the surgery that would result in keeping the expectation level of the patient at ground level, meaning ‘realistic level’!

There are several instances when the counselors, in the interest of finalizing the treatment, give false assurances about the outcome of treatment. These counselors are usually the enthusiastic lot who constantly crave for appreciation from superiors on the ground of maximum conversions. To avoid such a situation, it is important that the surgeon educate and keep the counselor updated about the latest developments in one’s industry and practice. It is also mandatory that the final outcome is personally discussed with the patient apart from taking written consent across the table.

Having said that, discontentment from the patient’s side is not yet discussed. Surgeons need to realize that the treatment does not end as soon as an uneventful surgery is complete. Ideally, a post-operative interaction about the actual results needs to be demonstrated and discussed in a simple language in which the patient would grasp and more importantly believe & agree.

Now, what if the patient had come to an agreement to undergo surgery only after careful thought about the possible outcome, yet is dissatisfied following surgery? This is a tricky situation. This is when the clinicians should not run and hide! At this stage, all that the patient wishes is to see the surgeon’s smiling face and reassurance, that as a surgeon, he is pleased that he was indeed able to save him from further damage!

Psychologically the patient has every right to feel dissatisfied following surgery, in spite of elaborate discussions prior to surgery. However, it is not acceptable by the patient if the surgeon criticizes him for being so. Apart from the clinical outcome of surgery the patient equally expects emotional support from his surgeon.

In my opinion, the all-time successful surgeons with booming practice are those who can balance promise and delivery of results to their patients. They are the ones who ‘under-promise’ and ‘over-deliver’ and even if they don’t, they can reach their patients with their hearts!