Spent the morning with the hospital manager Sunil, who walked me through the clinics and in many cases acted as my director, suggesting several shots I wouldn't have managed without his authority and direction. Staff quickly complied with his requests to love here or there, or redo certain actions that we could get a better or different capture. It was great to have him with me!
The big boss rolled into town last night. Sarang is the guy who founded the local NGO that made the Kalinga Eye Hospital happen. His story is inspiring and you can learn a little bit more about him here and here. In person he’s somewhat charismatic, as a good leader needs to be. You feel like you've known him even though you've just met him. He’s good at praising others he’s just met, building them up so that they feel good about helping him. We had a short chat outside the hospital - we caught him as he arrived – and then he sat me down in his office for something more serious. He wanted my advice, as someone a bit more mature than the average college-age volunteer, about how to improve Kalinga. Quite a tall order.
Unfortunately, I don’t have experience running a medical institution, nor any institution outside a classroom of 20-30 students. I said I’d have to consider it and respond at a later date. In the meantime, work was waiting, a couple of urgent grant applications. I got one finished before turning in for the night. One more to do this morning before one more day of shooting surgery. Tomorrow morning I leave for a two-day tour of the area’s Buddhist archaeological sites.
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