July 1, 2025. The interns checked some papers assigned to them, not only the VCG interns but also some helpful interns that were willing to provide some assistance.

July 1, 2025. While waiting for night class, some of the bois played a mobile game to bond and relieve stress after a whole day's duty.  Rednel, the man in red, is nelling them by observing their skills and being amazed on Celso's fast hands.

July 1, 2025. The very first OPT 051 Practicum Lab Class, taught by Doc Liz, emphasized the importance of critical thinking skills and evidence-based practice. Drawing from her experiences in Sydney, Australia, Doc Liz highlighted these not just for clinicians, but for thinkers in general. A key takeaway was to always question and avoid jumping to conclusions without supporting evidence. 

July 2, 2025. The interns attended their last college orientation. While it may have been repetitive, the interns still respectfully gave their time and attention, hoping to be reminded of any rules and regulations they might have been overlooking. 

July 2, 2025. A walk-in patient presented with a foreign body (a small ant) in her bulbar conjunctiva. After five minutes of unsuccessfully attempting to remove it themselves, as it appeared to have bitten the conjunctival tissue, the patient sought help from the interns in the PECC. The interns promptly attended to the patient and successfully removed the foreign body. To ensure no residual foreign bodies or damage to the eye's surface, the patient's eye was stained with fluorescein dye and examined with a slit lamp after a brief rest period.

July 2, 2025. Interns Niña Yosores, Clouie Intong, and Kat Aviles worked together to update the framed intern photograph at the PECC. Their bright smiles reflect their enthusiasm and readiness to embrace the challenges of their internship.

July 3, 2025. The 3rd Years were introduced with the clinical setup in the PECC and was taught how to take visual acuity and other basic optometric procedures. They were supervised and assisted by the interns.

July 3, 2025. The interns took their first examination, based on pages 1-20 of Millodot's "Dictionary of Optometry and Vision Science." They were very focused, drawing their readings into answers for the examination. Congratulations to Jeremie Bayer for attaining a perfect score! 

July 4, 2025. All interns gathered to discuss updates concerning flight bookings, checking the pattern making of the lower year, PECC concerns, the Sudlon free clinic update, and journal writing. 

July 5, 2025. The VCG interns had a discussion about vision therapy, primarily led by Joshua Martinez. He showcased the procedures for different tests that can be used for vision therapy. Not to mention, they are all in their scrubs!

July 8, 2025. This marks the first day of the clinical duty for the senior clinicians (5th-years). The interns went to their respective stations and provided assistance to the 5th-years whenever they had something for clarification or when they asked for a clinical verdict. The interns ensured that the clinical duties followed the proper protocols for patient care.

July 9, 2025. Despite their full-day workloads, the interns still dedicated their time to attend the night class for the first ocular pharmacology session of their optometry practicum. Doc Deneb enthusiastically discussed the basics of pharmacology, delving into the two types of drug actions: pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics.

July 10, 2025. Early on the morning at 7:00 AM, the interns dedicated their time to attending the final Student Success Program (SSP) class. During this initial session, Sir Joseph, the SSP teacher, discussed CRAFT, an acronym for Communication, Respect, Attendance Adherence, Focus, and Trust. 

July 11, 2025. The four volunteers enthusiastically presented their journal writing to the morning class. To ensure the interns gained valuable insights, thought-provoking questions like mini-quizzes or essays were provided. 

July 11, 2025. On Friday night, in class, Doc Chua discussed the basics of practice management. He drew out real-life situations and asked the interns how they would deal with them. 

July 12, 2025. Before leaving, interns were responsible for cleaning their respective stations to maintain the clinic's professional appearance and uphold high standards of cleanliness.

July 12, 2025. In her first class on Research Dissemination, Dr. Gelai discussed and reviewed with the class the key elements of a research dissemination plan, types of target audiences, key principles of research presentation, and effective communication strategies. 

July 14, 2025. The CHHEI interns kicked off their program at Chong Hua Hospital Mandaue with a foundational seminar. This session introduced them to the hospital's protocols and their upcoming responsibilities, alongside a discussion of Chong Hua Hospital's core values, mission, and vision. They believe that the patient care starts at the security guard.

July 14, 2025. Handling the subject Physiologic Optics (PO) for the practicum, Doc Dalope gave a surprise quiz about identifying what ocular disease based on the fundus image screened on the TV. Only two interns, Jeremie and Felianne, achieved a passing score of 10/14—congratulations to them! Afterward, Dr. Dalope reviewed the Physiologic Optics material with the interns, smiling throughout the session.

The PDF discussed by Doc Dalope is available here

July 14, 2025. Wishing a very Happy Birthday to Roselainee! Her age is confidential. As you can see in her eyes, she is happy and ready to take on any challenges while still bearing that smile. 

July 15, 2025. The CHHEI interns had their 2nd day of the seminar. The speaker discussed OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration), specifically addressing safety rules, hospital color codes, evacuation protocols, the hierarchy of safety, and other related topics concerning work safety. 

July 15, 2025. Dear Diary, a walk-in patient came into the PECC complaining of a foreign body sensation. Prior to this, the patient had experienced a "puling" yesterday, which they tried to resolve by washing their eye and hoping it would not worsen. As the condition did not improve, the patient came to the PECC to have her eyes checked. Helpful interns, namely Noe Fernandez III and Niña Yosores, extended their help to assess the patient's eyes, under the supervision of CI Doc Dalope. 

July 15, 2025. Doc Liz discussed Evidence-Based Optometry (EBO), presenting on how EBO should be structured and emphasizing the importance of using proper sources. She also highlighted the necessity of curiosity as a key ingredient for a perfect EBO. 

You can check the presentation of Doc Liz here

July 16, 2025. After concluding their third and final seminar at Chong Hua Hospital Mandaue, Lyle Almagro, team leader of the CHHEI interns, took a groufie with his colleagues. The session focused on Infection Prevention and Control (IPC), emphasizing the most important takeaway: always be careful.

July 16, 2025. Due to heavy rainfall, classes were suspended starting at 3:30pm. As expected, the interns didn't go home at this time as they have dedicated to supervise the 5th-year clinicians on their duties, thereby having their time out extend to still 5:00pm. In addition, due to this, the examination for Doc Deneb's Ocular Pharmacology Practicum was suspended.

July 16, 2025. The first batch of Cebu Braille Center Rotation, primarily composed of the ever hardworking VCG interns (except Cledy). They're all set to Brailleantly show what they're capable of!

July 21, 2025. The interns took their very first P1 examination for the practicum class. They focused intently, relying on their wits to answer each question honestly. In the picture, one intern, Rednel, appears deep in thought, contemplating his life, whether he is making the right decisions. But one thing's for sure, he doesn't regret learning the Rednel way.

July 21, 2025. The first S5-Line has decided to appoint Celso and Noe III as representatives for the upcoming S5. The smiles on their faces show that they are ready to take on and happily defend any multi-disciplinary case they will be a part of. 

July 23, 2025. Lack of sleep, nervousness, anxiously awaiting their next turn to present the case study, and practicing their presentations are what characterize the interns during their first case presentation. Despite these challenges and struggles, they persevered through the day, gaining insights they realized upon being questioned by the panelists. Congratulations Batch Arcus Caelestis!

1/6 Case Presentations Completed

July 24-25, 2025. The Ocular Pharmacology P1 Examination was conducted over a two-day period. The first half of the exam was on July 24, while the second half was on July 25. The interns answered gleefully, showcasing their knowledge of ocular pharmacology. Perhaps some would even enroll in pharmacy just to show the world they've mastered pharmacology beyond the eyes. 

July 25, 2025. In a display of dedication, interns at the Bakilid Medical Mission willingly spent their night rest to dispense eyeglasses prescribed during the previous mission. With skillful fitting, they helped bring clarity to the patients’ vision, offering them a brighter tomorrow. Good night, interns. 

July 26, 2025. The second proficiency examination, on Ocular Disease, was a challenging one. Some interns were able to answer it, but others were wondering where their studying about xanthelasma went. Congratulations to Rednel Rosales for being the first to submit his test paper.

You can check the poem about the Ocular Disease Proficiency Examination here.

July 28, 2025. Hello Manila, Hello GB Vision! The first batch of interns at GB Vision happily explored and studied. 

July 29, 2025. The second day of the interns for their internship at GB Vision .

July 30, 2025. Happy Birthday to Jesska Ann Edullan! Together with his handsome boyfriend, they celebrated her grand day in the duty and vikings!

July 31, 2025. The senior clinicians now started doing their lensometry requirements under the observance of the interns assigned specifically to lensometer areas.