Sustainable Ophthalmology Scholarship in Wales - first Diary Entry

Hi Sustainability Friends!!!

I am Dr Alexander Chiu, ST6 trainee in Wales Deanery. I am proud and excited to be chosen to be the first Sustainable Ophthalmology Scholar in Wales. I started this post in August 2019 and have been spending 1 day a week to analyse the productivity, carbon and cost impact of cataract surgery at the ophthalmology departments in Wales. I plan on writing a diary blog once a month on my progress through this journey (this is my first ever blog so please bear with my writing)!

I have now worked in the NHS for over 8 years. The dream of a perfect healthcare system, when I initially started medical school, has slowly eroded over the years with inefficiencies and frustrations of the system day in and out. This is not an uncommon story and with my recent new addition to my family, I have decided to embark on a journey to try to make a difference for future generations. Having shown my enthusiasm on sustainability projects, I have been fortunate to be given an opportunity under the diligent supervision of Dr Daniel Morris (Consultant Ophthalmologist at University of Wales) and the Centre for Sustainable Healthcare (CSH) and the sponsors of Thea to work on my passion. (Yay!!!)

In the whirlwind, 2 and a half months have gone by swiftly. The amount of knowledge to take in has been unmeasurable. I have visited CSH and was introduced to the enthusiastic and passionate team including Dr Frances Mortimer and Ingeborg Steinbach; whom I will be working very closely with over the next year on my objectives and projects. They have been extremely friendly and welcoming and my main project this year will be to engage 5 hospitals in Wales to use the Eyefficiency quality improvement tool to calculate the productivity, carbon and cost impact of cataract surgery!!

My journey has now begun, wish me luck and hope you will see my progress through my future blog entries!!

Alex
Welsh sustainability scholar