We are Grateful for our Volunteers

The mission of the Armenian EyeCare Project is to eliminate avoidable blindness and to provide eyecare for all Armenians in need.  Since we began over 20 years ago our impact has been felt far and wide.

We are very proud of our  accomplishments over the last twenty years, which include, in part, the following:

• Since the Mobile Eye Hospital arrived in Armenia in 2002, we’ve seen close 300,000 patients.
• Over 50 volunteer American doctors have gone to Armenia on medical missions to treat patients and teach.
• We’ve Sponsored 12 Armenian patients for care in the US.
• 19 Million of medical equipment and supplies have been donated to Armenia.
• Our work has become the foundation for establishing Ophthalmology Curriculum/Residency Standards in Armenia.
• We have implemented a “Child Blindness Initiative” to fight infant blindness from ROP, saving hundreds of infants each year from a lifetime of blindness.

We would not be able to accomplish any of this without the generous support of our donors and volunteers.

Interested in Volunteering?
Interested in volunteering with us? There are a number of ways for you to get involved.  

• Doctors- join us on a Medical Mission:  What started out in 1992 as a solo mission by Dr. Roger Ohanesian from Laguna Beach, California to Armenia has flourished into a full-blown volunteer effort on the part of hundreds of American ophthalmologists and reconstructive surgeons.  These generous doctors have traveled to Armenia twice a year, at their own expense, to bring hope and eye care to a people who view the American doctors as their last chance for sight.  Along with performing thousands of surgeries, the volunteer doctors have provided training to Armenian doctors and helped in the creation of the country's first corneal eye bank.  They have also assisted in setting up a medical center in Nagorno-Karabakh, a tiny territory comprised of Armenians that is geographically encircled by Azerbaijan and was at war with it for years.
• Writers/Photographers/Film-makers—help us document the Missions:   As you’ve probably seen from our website and on YouTube(http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=armenian+eyecare+project&page=1), we have a wealth of creative works documenting the EyeCare Project and the people we help.  But we can always use more- particularly when it comes to our medical missions.   Put your  creative talents to use and join us on a medical mission.
• Medical Students- Participate in an Observership: If you are just getting started in medicine—as a pre-med student, a medical student or an intern, we have opportunities for you!  As a Medical Observer you will be at the side of Armenian and U.S. physicians as they care for patients, watching and learning at all of the Project’s facilities which include the Mobile Eye Hospital; five specialty clinics—Glaucoma, Retina, Corneal-Uveitis, Neuro-Orbital and Low Vision Clinic; a state-of-the-art Education Center with a “Wet Lab” donated by Pfizer; and a Diagnostic Center. In addition, you will join the doctors as they visit schools, nursing homes, soup kitchens and polyclinics—anywhere they are needed.
• Have other skills you want to put to use? Consider an administrative internship:  As an Administrative Intern you will work with the EyeCare Project staff in their Yerevan Office doing a variety of tasks that fit your skills and experience. You will join the staff as they visit schools, nursing homes, soup kitchens and polyclinics—anywhere they are needed. Interns select one of several areas and work with a staff member—or they may split their time and work between several areas. Projects include marketing and public relations; monitoring and evaluation; program design and development; and general health care administration.

Missions are typically held in June/July or September/October.  And thanks to the generosity of our volunteers, all expenses associated with the above are covered individually.  

We are grateful to our volunteers and celebrate them as we mark the 20th anniversary of the AECP this fall. They give us hope and inspire us to keep pursuing our goal of erasing preventable blindness in Armenia.  Interested in learning more about volunteer opportunities with the EyeCare Project? Contact Leslie: Leslie@eyecareproject.com.