I have the pleasure of working at the Children’s Hospital of Orange County on Fridays. We do pediatric examinations for underprivileged children in the area. It’s a great overall experience. The kids come in a little shy but we generally have them smiling (except when we put in the dreaded eye drops) at the end of the day.
During my time there I get to work with Dr. Monique Nguyen, a residency trained doctor who owns a private practice in Ladera Ranch. It’s refreshing to talk to her about vision therapy and how she runs her private practice.
Working at CHOC is an awesome reminder of why I joined this profession. You have these children who are struggling in school because of significant myopia but cannot afford glasses. And many children rarely complain, quietly struggling through academics for years just because they have poor vision and can’t see what the teacher is working on in front of the classroom.
So it’s rewarding to break ground and give them their first pair of glasses. One patient (not at CHOC) but who I am following at the Eye Care Center who has a +9.50 DS Rx in both eyes proudly yelled at my last amblyopia continuing evaluation.
“I LOVE MY GLASSES!!”
Awesome.