The VCHP team in Yorkshire has just welcomed a guest from the University of Montreal who is keen to learn more about the care delivery model for people experiencing homelessness. Dr Benoit Tousignant, Associate Professor from the Université de Montréal School of Optometry and School of Public Health, visited the charity while on a trip to Europe, as Elaine Styles, Chair of VCHP explained –
“Benoit and I saw the Yorkshire mobile unit in action, along with the Bevan mobile health team in a bus. He also visited our fixed clinic in East London, meeting optometrist Pira Manikavasagar, VCHP Development Director David Brown and Stan Burridge from Expert Focus.
“Benoit started a Montreal mobile outreach clinic for people experiencing homelessness eight years ago, Regard collectif. It shares many similarities with VCHP but is administered through the university’s eye clinic. With 13 different locations across the city, Regard collectif also conducts research. The team have published papers on the prevalence of eye care conditions in their population, social determinants of health, barriers and facilitators for uptake of eye care, attitudes of students rotating through the clinic, and with more in the pipeline.
“It was a pleasure to meet Benoit and I found it valuable to share knowledge and experiences so that we can improve our service offering. I would like to thank him for taking the time to reach out and visit. We look forward to future collaborations on research and service delivery. “
Benoit was impressed with what he saw –
“Thank you all for the wonderful welcome. Your generosity and openness allowed me to discover VCHP as a wonderful organisation, which lives up to its reputation. You have strong teams and great collaborators, and your accomplishments are very impressive. It was a very instructive experience, and reminiscent of issues we face in Montreal, but also of the rewarding aspects of our work with vulnerable populations. I look forward to keeping in touch and collaborating with you.”
Pictured left to right: Pira, Benoit, Stan, David, Christine Lau, Clinic Assistant
