Neuro Orbital Masterclass Introduction

Title: Introductory remarks
Presenter: Michael Dan
I’d like to begin my remarks, in typical Canadian fashion, with an apology. I am not your typical Canadian neurosurgeon. The last time I picked up a scalpel was nearly 20 years ago. And I apologize for not knowing very much about the eye. During my brief neurosurgical career, I tried as hard as possible to stay away from the eye. The closest I ever got was the optic nerve, which as we all know, is the reason why we have an eye.

David Verity ask me to say a few words about the St. John Eye Hospital, and personal insecurities aside, I’m only too happy to oblige. The Eye Hospital is one of the best kept secrets in the Middle East—sort of the opposite of the Israeli nuclear program—which is the biggest open secret in the Middle East. Even worse, from a public relations perspective, everyone who works at the Eye Hospital is so modest, humble, and unassuming that it’s impossible to get them to open up about religion or politics (even after several gin and tonics). The Eye Hospital staff just go about their business, doing good work day in and day out, without any expectation of praise or recognition. Any narcissist would simply wither in such an environment.

But I don’t work for the Eye Hospital, and I’m not reluctant to talk about religion or politics. So, let’s start with religion. The Eye Hospital is open to people of all faiths, or even no faith. The Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem, which is the UK branch of the Alliance of Orders of St John of Jerusalem, is a nominally Christian order that also welcomes individuals of all faiths—or no faith—except at the highest levels of the executive. There’s a Malaysian branch of St. John Ambulance, which operates in a Muslim country, and which runs over a dozen dialysis clinics that serve the poorest of the poor. The Canadian branch of St. John Ambulance has a therapy dog program, which is also very successful, but not nearly as challenging an operation as running dialysis clinics.

The motto of the Order of St. John is a conveniently worded “pro fide, pro utilitate hominum”, which translates as “for the faith and for the benefit of humanity.” This gives the organization enough wiggle room to accommodate worthy atheists, agnostics, climate change skeptics, and even a few carnivores.

On the political front, the Eye Hospital never takes sides. If you favor Palestinians, then there’s much to be proud of. The Eye Hospital is a JCI-accredited institution that provides tertiary level care (much of it charitable) to the Palestinian community in the West Bank and Gaza, while operating under financially precarious conditions. The hospital is staffed, from bottom to top, by Palestinians. The floor cleaner is a Palestinian, the nursing staff are Palestinian, the doctors are Palestinian, and the hospital CEO is a Palestinian. It’s the furthest thing from a British colonial outpost, run by British ex-pats. Those days are long gone. The Eye Hospital showcases Palestinian talent and accomplishments 365 days per year.

If you favor Israelis, then you will understand that the Eye Hospital plays a vital role in ensuring Israel’s security. A Palestinian population that receives world-class medical care is a good thing for Israel, and the Israeli government recognizes this. In 2018 the Eye Hospital opened a spanking new clinic in the Gaza Strip. It was built at a time when it was otherwise impossible to bring bricks and mortar into the Strip for fear they would be used by Hamas to construct terror tunnels. But the Gaza Clinic was built, with the full cooperation of the Israelis, because they understood that it was the right thing to do—and not just from a humanitarian perspective. Again, this is one of those good news stories that few people have ever heard about.

As a charity, the St. John Eye Hospital Group is squeaky clean. Its books are open and transparent. Its efficiency ratio is something like 92%. That means that 92 pence from every pound donated to the Eye Hospital go directly to clinical care. Such numbers are basically unheard of in any other medical charity in the world. Donations to the Eye Hospital receive a tax receipt, and with it, a chain of accountability that will convince any tax authority that the funds are not going to some terrorist organization in the Middle East.

From a donor perspective, the St. John Eye Hospital is a worry-free way of giving the gift of sight to the poorest of the poor in Palestine. As my mother used to say: “What’s not to like?” Thank you for your attention and support of the Eye Hospital. Please enjoy the conference.