I’m the newest Program Coordinator on the EyePACS team and my role is mostly administrative. Nonetheless, I was excited and eager to shadow other colleagues’ photography trainings because I wanted to contribute directly to our company’s mission statement of preventing blindness. Last month, I felt ready and nervous to lead my first training at Churn Creek Healthcare in Redding, California.
As soon as I walked in through the door, the nurse coordinator greeted me warmly and she led me to the room for training. When I entered, I was surprised to see that the staff already had the Powerpoint presentation open! They were ready to get started. As I set up my laptop and training materials, I talked to the staff and felt their enthusiasm to get trained and certified. During the presentation, they asked thoughtful questions about which image quality factors to look for and how to upload practice cases.
When it was time to start practicing on their Canon camera, we moved into a dark exam room that was perfect for screening. They took turns being the photographer and patient and supported each other as there was a bit of trial and error in the beginning. I felt relieved because everything was going smoothly and I was able to answer all of their questions. Before I knew it, they uploaded excellent first sets of practice images.
After it was over, I left the clinic smiling and feeling accomplished. I successfully helped them learn how to operate the camera and they’re now equipped to start screening their patients with diabetes.
