Written by Hazel Dhaliwal (1st year)
I am so grateful I got the opportunity to join Dr. Diana Nguyen in clinic via the CAOS mentorship program. Dr. Nguyen talked about the recent transition of eyeLABS Optometry to Prism Eye Institute in Brampton. In addition to being involved in primary care, she has a special interest in advanced dry eye therapy. During my visit I had the opportunity to witness Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) treatment conducted on many patients. It was rewarding to observe how happy the patients were post-treatment and how the results conveyed significant improvements. In fact, I even asked Dr. Nguyen about why I wake up with dry eyes sometimes. It may be because I have lagophthalmos!
Furthermore, I was very impressed with how first semester learnings were reinforced during my experience. For example, in Neuroanatomy we learned about eye muscles and their respective movements; in clinic, Dr. Nguyen taught me how to differentiate between exotropia and esotropia among patients. Also, in Microbiology we learned about how herpes simplex virus could cause ocular issues; in clinic, Dr. Nguyen showed me a patient with the herpes simplex virus who also had keratitis. Overall, it was interesting to make these connections.
With still a long road ahead, Dr. Nguyen advised to maintain a healthy work-life balance to prevent burn out. This includes having a good sleep schedule, eating healthy, and using the free student gym membership!
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