Heroes of Orbis: Dr. Peter Kertes

Dr. Kertes first heard about Orbis while he was a resident, training at the University of Ottawa back in 1997. “One of my mentors, Dr. Brian Leonard, was a very seasoned and frequent volunteer with Orbis”, he tells us “I thought it seemed almost magical that you could duck away from your practice for a week at a time and create these great alliances with ophthalmologists halfway across the world.”

Now, as an expert in retina at the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center – a teaching hospital in Toronto – Dr. Kertes dedicates his time to saving sight in his community. And with his free time, he volunteers with Orbis to nurture and mentor his fellow ophthalmologists around the world.

Over the years, his many travels with Orbis have taken him to China, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Malaysia and, most recently, Ghana.

Image gallery: photos of Dr. Kertes taken during Flying Eye Hospital programs over the years.

Like so many of us, life has not been the same for Dr. Kertes since the COVID-19 pandemic hit. The first COVID patient in Canada was treated at his hospital back in January 2020. Since then, the pandemic has disrupted everything, from cancelling routine eye exams and elective surgeries, to transitioning to online training.

Thankfully, as Dr. Kertes points out, Orbis’s long-standing history of innovation meant we could pivot our training approach quickly to develop the virtual Flying Eye Hospital programs. And despite this being new to him, it didn’t stop Dr. Kertes from volunteering his time to deliver virtual training to eye teams in Cameroon and India—even delivering a lecture in French for teams in Cameroon!

Being a dedicated mentor means that Dr. Kertes was already well-versed in using Cybersight, and much to his delight, the lecture he delivered on retina had the most attendees of any virtual training session in India last year. And just last month, he was able to assist a colleague in Egypt to diagnose a rare eye condition using Cybersight, which otherwise may have been missed.

As a leader in his field, Dr. Kertes’ expertise means he’s been able to teach and train eye health teams around the world on board the Flying Eye Hospital—from sharing his knowledge in retinopathy and how to carry out effective screenings, to demonstrating the latest surgical techniques using simulation training.

Reflecting on life before COVID-19, he tells us that he can’t wait to get back to working with trainees in-person. “I have to say that I love screening day” Dr. Kertes tells us. This part of our in-country programs is essential for building rapport with trainees, allocating patients, and making sure the local eye health teams will come away with the skills they need to treat more patients in their community.

We want to say a big thank-you to Dr. Kertes for being such a committed member of Team Orbis. Your generosity in sharing your time and expertise with eye health teams around the world means that more people can access the eye care they need before it’s too late.

We’d like to thank Orbis supporters for making it possible for heroes like Dr. Kertes to train teams around the world and improve access to eye care. With the global pandemic causing backlogs in urgent cases, your support is more critical than ever.