Full Transcript Podcast Introduction and Guest Background 0:06 Welcome to the Doctors Making a Difference podcast where we help physicians to be empowered with the tools they need to successful in medicine, 0:13 in finance, and in life. 0:15 Join us as we highlight doctors and other professionals around the world who are making a difference. 0:26 We are privileged today to have as our guest Dr. 0:29 Stuart Clive. 0:31 He's given me permission to call him Stu. 0:33 Dr Clives has been practicing in Western Idaho as an emergency room physician for a long time and has this amazing story of donating a one year salary 0:44 completely to help restore blindness. 0:45 every secure blindness for people in Ghana. 0:48 And I read this story and I was pretty inspired. 0:51 Couldn't wait to meet you as Stu. 0:53 I think it's pretty cool. 0:54 So I'm interested to hear kind of this whole career path that led to this interesting place. 0:58 Would you mind introducing yourself to our audience? 1:01 Sure, I'm Stuart Clive. 1:02 I am an emergency physician. 1:04 As you mentioned, been practicing in Western Idaho for, that's approaching 20 years. 1:08 And before that I was in Minnesota. 1:11 Did my undergrad at BYU and I went to medical school at Emory University and then I did residency training at UT Houston. 1:21 You know, I think most of the audience are physicians. 1:23 Most people will say like, well, they did this pedigree and they went to this many schools and went this place and have this board certification. 1:29 And, you know we all need to have that as far as our basis. 1:33 What led you back to Western Idaho? 1:35 Is that where you grew up or what led to that part of world? 1:38 My parents are retired out to Washington state and my wife's family was headquartered in the Salt Lake. 1:45 So we split the difference and settled in Boise area. 1:48 It's a nice place over there. 1:49 It seems like the population of Boise in particular has grown a lot, especially during your 20-year period that you've been there, 1:55 I imagine you have seen a lots of changes in that part of the world. 1:59 It's grown too much, unfortunately, but it's still a great place. 2:02 Very moderate weather. 2:03 We are not suffering through the winter like most of the country is. 2:06 Yeah, that's true. 2:07 And Western United States has been particularly dry this year. 2:10 I enjoy skiing and snowmobiling and all those things, so we are wishing it would snow a little bit more, So just kind of another question on this. 2:21 So you went into emergency room medicine. 2:23 And so this is part of the story. 2:24 I want to hear a little bit more about your decision to support curing blindness in Ghana. 2:31 The part I thought was interesting is, you're not an ophthalmologist. 2:34 You don't really do eye health. 2:37 What led to this decision? 2:38 So first of all, just tell us about what you committed to do and the nuts and bolts of how it's working and then how did you arrive at that decision. 2:47 Sure. 2:48 It's not straightforward. 2:49 I guess I've just spent a lot of time over the course of my life and career pondering how you can get the most meaning out of life, 2:57 how do you be of most value to your community, to the people in need.
Why Stu Chose Western Idaho and Emergency Medicine 3:03 I had seen a documentary some years ago and they went to North Korea and in North Korean this ophthalmologist would do these outreaches and he would over 3:15 the course of a week about 700 surgeries. 3:19 It was just every 10 minutes curing a person's blindness. 3:23 And it was just this phenomenal thing. 3:25 I was so impressed that I went and researched the charity that he was with and found that they could cure blindness for this incredibly small amount of money. 3:35 And I think that it can be as cheap as like a hundred dollars to cure someone of blindness in some countries. 3:41 Gamma's a little bit more mature and so it's little more expensive there. 3:46 Just when I thought about the potential impact that a contribution could make, I just couldn't imagine anything more than giving someone sight for $100. 3:56 Are they primarily doing cataract surgery or lens replacement or what type of surgeries are they able to do? 4:01 It's primarily cataract. 4:03 As their system is maturing, they are getting more advanced procedures. 4:09 They're able to do some retina surgeries, They are able do cornea transplants. 4:14 they're getting much more robust. 4:16 Initially it was just catarax and I think that's how it's progressed. 4:20 My contribution is tagged for completing a residency in a hospital in Ghana. 4:28 And they were able to build the hospital primarily, but they didn't have the funds, the USAID shut down. 4:35 And so they did not have funds to complete the administrative offices, residency offices and weren't going to be able start a residency. 4:43 So my funds will go to that project. 4:46 And so, yeah, so it'll be, I guess, the full spectrum of ophthalmologic care that I'll support. 4:51 Well, and not just those folks who have the surgery, but you're also, it sounds like, involved in the education process of others who are going to learn 4:58 to be opthalmological surgeons and going on to correct probably tens of thousands of cases of blindness over the course of a career. 5:06 That's even more than I actually had envisioned that this would impact. 5:09 It's amazing. 5:11 I feel tremendously blessed to have found an opportunity like this where I can make a significant difference. 5:20 One of the things we've talked about on this podcast quite a bit is it seems like the news media and a lot of stories that kind of bubble to the top talk 5:28 about all the challenging sides of medicine, burnout and EMR usage and Poor compensation and prior authorizations and all those things are the lived reality 5:38 of all of us. 5:38 I'm a practicing physician just like you. 5:40 We all deal with the imperfections of the system. 5:43 And so I think this is kind of incredible because a lot of times we focus on the negative so much it's easy. 5:48 It's hard to see past it and see what kind on the world with my own skill set. 5:54 And you specifically are talking about doing something that's going to be really impactful to lots of people thousands of miles away.
Discovering the Impact of Cure Blindness 6:01 It's not even in your area of specialty. 6:03 I know you just say it like it's kind of a normal thing, but I do think this is actually pretty incredible to find a way to give back and to leave a lasting 6:13 legacy or impact. 6:14 So I'm curious, how did you decide to actually act on it? 6:18 So I guess I'm religious, I am Christian, and as a result of going to church every week and being doing that constant prompting of like, 6:27 are you doing enough? 6:28 Are you following the example of Christ? 6:30 I have just over the course of my life, always thought about it. 6:34 Always wondered if I was making enough of a difference in the world. 6:36 And then having donated some to this charity in past, knowing what good work that they were able to accomplish. 6:44 I guess it was just in the back of my mind that as I approached the end of career, did I really want to just lay it down, 6:52 or could I do something more with my training and education? 6:56 And, you know, I suppose you spoke earlier about burnout. 7:00 I was certainly pretty burned out, as are many people in our specialty. 7:06 And, you know, I had already kind of reached my target, my goal. 7:10 I planned on retiring at 57. And so I crossed that threshold. 7:16 Looked at my finances and when I reviewed my finance, as I realized I'm in pretty good shape. 7:22 My colleagues are retiring with comparable savings. 7:25 and they're at comparable ages and laying down their tools. 7:29 But I still felt healthy and strong and I felt like I was able to do the job. 7:33 And I've been blessed with having a great job that is much less stressful than some of the jobs that I have had in the past. 7:41 So I didn't feel the urgency to get out of that emergency department. 7:46 I just started thinking about well, How long would I work to cure a stranger of blindness? 7:53 And when I pondered the question that way, I was like, it would certainly be way more than an hour or way than a shift or, 8:00 you know, way And when you do the math and you realize that you can, say, cure not just one person in a shift, but many, 8:11 potentially dozens, depending on what your salary is, it kind of made math easy to me. 8:17 I realized, okay, I would do that for a stranger. 8:19 So the question became, how many would I want to do this for? 8:24 How many what I'd be willing to this? 8:26 And that was actually kind of the harder question, was not whether, but kind how long to do it, how much of a sacrifice. 8:33 And I wanted to it enough that I felt like I had done as much as I could, that had really pushed myself to really sacrifice, 8:46 and a year just made sense. 8:47 It was a nice round number to prolong my career that much. 8:51 So that's the commitment I've made. 8:53 The experience that has been so positive and so gratifying that, I don't know, it may end at a year. 9:02 I shouldn't say this if my wife listens, but... 9:04 may continue on beyond the year, we'll see. 9:07 Well, you have this ability to make a big impact. 9:10 One of the things, this kind of harkens to lots of things we've talked about on this show. 9:13 And one of, the big underlying things that I think is pretty important, foundational to be able to, make an impact is to have your financial house in order. 9:22 and I, think that's basically what you're saying. 9:24 You hit those financial targets. 9:26 you can get to where it hits your, financial independence number. 9:29 then at that point. 9:31 you're not working just because you have to make a paycheck. 9:33 You're working because he wanna make it difference. 9:36 And you not necessarily doing it to please some administrator or anything like that. 9:41 Because you said, I love helping people and maybe I can use my time and energy and resources to do something good in the world. 9:50 It's just amazing. 9:52 It was, it inspired me when I read about it. 9:56 And I think it'll be inspirational to others to not just think about what you can do right here, right now in your community,
Funding Ophthalmology Training in Ghana 10:02 but what could they do to give out? 10:05 What could I do? 10:05 To make a difference to other people. 10:09 a Christian background or other religious background, or just people who are really humanitarian in their hearts. 10:15 They really want to use that skill set and the aspirations of becoming a physician to make a big impact and a tremendous difference. 10:23 It sounds like you've had a real kind of awakening or an understanding on that. 10:27 One of the biggest surprises of this experience, and I've been doing it for three months now. 10:33 And so I have been donating all of my income for that time. 10:37 The biggest surprise in doing that has been my change in perspective on going to my shift. 10:44 I started heading this direction, got all the Gabby. 10:47 Yeah. 10:47 I mean, I was burned out a little bit, not as bad as I could have been, but I wasn't excited to go to my shifts. 10:53 But now doing this, it really is something that I'm excited about. 10:59 And I no longer wondering, oh, geez, when's my next shift? 11:02 When am I going to have the opportunity to do more, to make more of a difference? 11:07 And then when I am there, and happier, nicer to the patients, good for the soul. 11:12 When you're putting your dollars to work, we all need to the mindset that every dollar we earn gets a job and gets put to work so that it can be good for 11:21 our finances. 11:21 But in this case, you say, look, my financial house is in order, and now I'm trying to restore vision and help people across the world. 11:28 And that is joyful if you realize that, every shift, or every $1 you make is going to go and, help somebody else who is, 11:35 in tremendous need. 11:36 That's got to be a big perspective shift. 11:38 How has it affected your Like just career burnout. 11:41 Like you even talk, and hinted maybe even doing it longer if you're not feeling burned out. 11:46 Right, I don't feel that urgency anymore to be done. 11:50 Before, as I mentioned, got a good job. 11:52 The nights were the thing that were getting me, that we're making me feel being up all night was, cause I worked 24 hour shifts. 11:59 And so that got pretty long sometimes. 12:02 Until yeah, it was hard. 12:03 But now I had a shift and I'd been up for 22 hours or 23 hours, or something like that. 12:10 I'm just steadily busy dealing with some critical patients. 12:13 And I stopped and I just pondered, where would I rather be? 12:16 You know, would rather I be in Europe? 12:18 Would I Rather be visiting my kids? 12:20 would i rather Be going to a game or whatever? 12:23 No, I'd rather. 12:24 Be here. 12:24 This is where I want to be. 12:26 Well, and you know you can find a balance or you try to find some harmony between all those different things. 12:32 But I think it's interesting and a lot of times folks who find themselves a burnout and i've been there too. 12:37 We all find ourselves saying, Is this it? 12:40 What comes next? 12:41 And maybe the only thing you can think of is escape. 12:44 How do I get out of this? 12:44 I gotta get outta this as quick as possible. 12:47 And yet it's a lot healthier to say, I found a way to make sure my finances make sense, but I'm no longer doing this because I have to do it right this minute. 12:55 I'm doing it because I choose to, and I want to show up for my patients. 12:59 And I wanna be able to use the skillset. 13:01 So I feel like I am a much better doctor when I show that way for patients, if I have well rested and want be there. 13:07 If I doing just because it's another shift and have to do it and it feels kind of drudgery, I not as good a doctor. 13:14 I think these financial things you talked about and kind perspective shift, it not just a good idea. 13:20 It's almost like mandatory that we find something that's a little bit higher purpose to what we do. 13:25 Right. 13:25 Yeah. 13:26 And getting ahead of the game, being comfortable that you're secure so that, you can then look outward. 13:32 I mean, that's all the things I guess I'm a little bit embarrassed about. 13:36 Oh, so how much have you given in past to this charity? 13:41 And I've been embarrassed because, I would just give a bit here and there each year at the end of year. 13:48 So for my own security, had to settle my financial house and be totally ready and then I could start we're making a significant contribution. 13:56 Yeah, depending on how you structure your career, some people do it like that where they wait till everything is settled and then go it.
Burnout, Financial Independence, and Purpose 14:02 Other people will do that a little bit. 14:04 Along the way, they say, I've met my financial targets for this fiscal year, this calendar year. 14:09 And the rest of it can go to charity or tithing or whatever it may be, whatever you want that money to do good. 14:16 I think it's helpful for all of us to say it is not just money. 14:19 It's time. 14:19 Its expertise, its skill, and it just looking out for our fellow neighbor. 14:25 What do you think of when I've talked about international service? 14:28 Because I have done quite a bit of that type of stuff. 14:31 Sometimes people will say, well, what about us here in our town? 14:34 How come you're not giving us of your time and resources more generously? 14:38 We certainly do all that stuff, but it's a little bit more quiet, a lot more anonymous. 14:42 And so I was curious, how did you decide on Ghana? 14:45 And how do respond to folks who say well how come your not donating a year's salary to our local charity cause? 14:52 That is something that I've pondered a lot. 14:53 I have actually had this discussion with my children. 14:56 How do you balance that you're giving, your charity, between people that are distant and people they're near? 15:03 Do you have a greater obligation to your neighbors? 15:10 And I guess as I have with my children traveled to the third world several times, and then I served a mission in Ecuador for a couple of years, 15:20 I personally, through that experience, have developed quite a bond with the people in the Third World. 15:26 So I feel connected to them. 15:27 I felt like they are my neighbors. 15:30 And so I didn't have as much of a hesitation about sending my dollars far. 15:35 But even with that factored in, the backup reasoning in my mind was where can I make the most difference? 15:42 If I gave my year's salary here in community, sure, it would be great. 15:46 I could add significantly to the joy in the world. 15:49 But if instead I can cure a thousand people of blindness in a third world, which is making the best place it can possibly be. 15:59 And that was how I made my decision. 16:01 Yeah. 16:01 Well, and you've noticed the same thing I have. 16:04 There's opportunities to help people everywhere and people who are generous tend to do that throughout their entire lives. 16:11 I can say it's often done kind of quietly through opportunities at home. 16:15 And sometimes when you get on an airplane or you send money to a different place, it receives a little more attention, but it all kind the the thing. 16:21 If you consider yourself a citizen of planet earth and the people on the world are your neighbors and look out for each other, 16:28 It's a tremendously good way to to it. 16:30 And the other thing I've noticed, just like you kind of hinted to, is when you talk to people in developing countries and you assess the needs there, 16:37 it's just orders of magnitude different. 16:40 And I noticed when we've gone on similar trips to Africa and South America to go help folks. 16:45 Our relatively small contribution usually bring in something less than $5,000 worth of aid to help with some cause. 16:53 And it'll fund them for months. 16:56 Like the amount of impact they can have with that relatively, small amount, of money is just incredible. 17:01 And so it is a way to magnify the effort. 17:03 And then if you give somebody just a little bit of independence, if use have someone in Ghana who now can see and take care of themselves, 17:10 that's a person who's no longer in that deep poverty cycle. 17:13 They pull themselves out of it because now they have an opportunity. 17:16 That's the gift that is unmatched. 17:18 It's amazing. 17:20 People from my charity have pointed out that when you have a person in the third world who's blind, they aren't the only person that's affected by this. 17:29 There's typically another family member who is drafted to support them, and so essentially by curing that blindness, you're curating two people. 17:39 or saving two people. 17:40 You're giving one person the autonomy and the independence to care for themselves, and you're given that other person that usually they said a girl that's 17:48 pulled out of school. 17:49 And so you are giving her education and her future as well. 17:53 Well, you've discovered the same thing. 17:54 I have most people, if you give them an opportunity and a chance, They don't want to hand out. 17:59 They just want an opportunity. 18:00 If they want a way to be able to lift themselves up, there are some who might want handouts and might it to just something that's given to them forever. 18:08 But the majority of people, when they're given a chance to receive an education, given the chance, to improve their health, 18:14 they wanted, and they'll take it. 18:15 And that how some of these countries that are in the developing process will continue to make tremendous headway is just by individually is one by one, 18:24 giving them that opportunity, then they pull themselves. 18:26 It's incredible. 18:27 So cool what you're doing. 18:29 Thank you. 18:29 I feel that I'm the one that's blessed about as much as anyone. 18:33 It is just an amazing opportunity to serve. 18:37 There have just been an accumulation of blessings over the course of my life that have made it possible for this to happen. 18:45 Everything the parents taught me that made possible me to go to school and earn a good living. 18:52 And then just the training and the experiences that I've had that have made me look outward. 18:57 And now to be able to do this, it's just really one of the great blessings of my life to.
Choosing Global Service Over Local Giving 19:01 Awesome. 19:03 Well, I want to talk a little bit about what advice you would give to others, because people listening to this are across the entire spectrum. 19:09 Some are medical students, some are residents, and some have been in their career for a lot of years. 19:13 In perspective of now and hindsight, how would you advise people to find things like this to give back to, whether it be local or far away? 19:21 Because there's a lotta people say, ''I'm so busy, i don't have time to even think about this,'' or ''i don' have enough money, 19:26 or i'm in so much debt, that i can't think of doing anything else to help somebody else.'' You've talked about the joy it brought you, 19:32 and I'm just curious, what advice would you give to others who are along that path? 19:37 I would have two bits of advice, I guess. 19:40 The first is to look and try to find that thing that you're excited about. 19:46 You sense my excitement about this project, and it is a wonderful thing to me, but it might not be the same for somebody else. 19:53 Somebody else might want to fix the hunger problem in their community. 19:57 Someone else may want dig a well in the third world. 20:00 This is something that I'm just thrilled about, just excited And so seek out something like that so that you then have that thrill and that satisfaction 20:12 in meeting that need. 20:13 And then the other thing I regret not doing earlier is dedicating a shift. 20:19 If I had had that opportunity or if I'd had thought previously, if thought I'm going to pick up an extra shift and donate those funds to the charity of 20:29 my choice, that would have provided some of that, I think, burnout resolution a lot earlier in my career. 20:38 Because as I've said, you know, when you, know what you're doing, When you are excited about what your doing and you go in and work that shift, 20:45 it sure changes your experience on that. 20:48 Now, when you tie what you're doing to a higher purpose, I think it always helps. 20:52 I've had a chance to volunteer quite a bit in some of these in Uganda and South America. 20:59 And one of the things I noticed for myself and for other volunteers who've come with us, because we're not going there to earn money, 21:06 we are not specifically going one by one to say, well, how many dollars did I make on this shift and what am I going to do with those dollars? 21:13 The ability to volunteer your time and resources to help somebody else. 21:16 It almost just feels like a vacation or it's just pure because you're helping somebody who has a need. 21:21 And I think all the way through our careers, if we can lace that through and say there's an opportunity to, to somebody without necessarily just punching 21:29 the clock and doing it because I have to earn so many RVUs, I'm doing because want to. 21:34 Help this person, those opportunities. 21:36 I mean, for me, that's brought me tremendous joy. 21:38 and I've think that that wonderful thing to try to figure out a way to do it in your career like you mentioned. 21:44 Right. 21:44 Integrating it into my career is the most kind of interesting thing about it for me. 21:50 I had considered doing Doctors Without Borders or going on some of the mission trips that I have seen and those are wonderful. 21:59 Those are great experiences. 22:00 Everyone that i've spoken to has done those. 22:03 has had a fantastic experience and has come back a changed person and so those are wonderful but like I said the fact that I have this experience during 22:11 my shift within my career or the same things that i've been doing has been quite different and surprising. 22:17 Yeah I actually like your idea of taking one incremental piece of your career integrated throughout an entire career path and said, 22:25 every so many shifts or every, so, many dollars, a portion of that goes to something that I really believe in, or I want to help somebody. 22:31 Because I think that does help give us purpose when you realize it's not selfish. 22:35 It's, not about me, it is about helping others. 22:37 And so I like that idea quite a bit, actually. 22:39 Well, It is not just an idea. 22:41 Something we probably need to do to avoid burnout. 22:44 Right, right. 22:45 That's cleansing for the soul. 22:46 So another question, have you been to Ghana yet? 22:49 I have not. 22:50 My wife and I are planning on going this summer. 22:53 Seeing the hospitals, seeing the countries, and seeing people. 22:56 And we're pretty excited about it. 22:58 That'll be awesome. 22:59 Yeah. 22:59 You can imagine.
Advice for Physicians on Meaningful Giving 23:00 It really changes your perspective on the trip. 23:02 Oh yeah, yeah. 23:03 You're not going there necessarily as a tourist, you're going to go as an integral part of this team and you are going see the work that's been able to 23:11 be done because of the contributions that you've had. 23:14 I'm sure you'll meet others there who are benefiting directly from that and it'll really solidify your efforts. 23:20 Probably after that, your wife will be on board with doing even more if you want. 23:25 When I first proposed the idea to her, my wife was hesitant. 23:31 Let's phrase it that way. 23:32 She says, you want to go do what? 23:34 How much do you wanna give, do wanna do? 23:36 But then when I spoke with the people at Cure Blindness, when they gave us a list of what could be accomplished by this and mentioned the scale of the problem. 23:46 In Ghana, there are 200,000 people that are blind that have curable blindness. 23:51 And with our gift, we'll be able to take out a little chunk of that But when my wife heard about how many there were, she was like, 23:59 well, we should turn them all. 24:02 And so that got her on board. 24:04 I don't know if I have that many years left in me. 24:07 A century left me, but she's pretty excited about it. 24:10 She's. 24:11 It's a hesitation when she thinks about it one way, but when you think about another way she's thrilled. 24:16 That's pretty cool. 24:16 And you know, the other thing like I mentioned earlier is I still think it's really interesting that this is not within your field of expertise. 24:23 I mean, as an ER doctor, you kind of deal a little bit with everything, But you're not an eye surgeon. 24:28 So you wouldn't think like that, eye surgery was going to be kind your main thing that you are doing with a donation. 24:34 But I've found that same thing with other international service things that I have been involved with. 24:40 You have a broad medical training and your understanding of the disease process. 24:44 Even if that is not exactly what you've done with your specialty, you have the opportunity to help a lot of people. 24:50 And I've had people sometimes say, well, I'm such and such specialist. 24:54 I can't go with you or donate. 24:56 You know, they can always send money, but they don't really have. 24:58 The understanding because they say that's not my specialty. 25:01 But I would say goodness gracious, your physician you train in, uh, You're a fully fledged MD or DO you. 25:07 Have that training. 25:08 Just because you narrowed it a little bit in your specialty. 25:12 It doesn't mean you still can't participate or understand that disease process. 25:15 So that's, again, I think it's remarkable that an ER doctor is the one that is sponsoring this and taking this on for probably, 25:23 you know, eventually tens of thousands of people who will benefit directly or indirectly from the work that you're doing. 25:29 But we all went into medicine, I think, to make a difference is ultimately what it was about. 25:34 And like I said, you just find that thing that resonates for you. 25:38 There are great things that you can do in emergency medicine. 25:41 I have colleagues that have used their emergency medicines backgrounds to do service. 25:47 That's wonderful, but that just wasn't the thing. 25:49 It made me feel like i was making the biggest possible difference. 25:54 Well, so tell us a little bit more about the organization you're working with. 25:56 I know you mentioned the name of it, but if you don't mind, tell the audience where to find it and what it's called. 26:01 And if somebody feels inspired by this, how do they contribute or get involved in something as great as this? 26:08 Sure. 26:08 So it's called the Cure Blindness Project. 26:11 It used to be referred to as the Himalayan Cataract Project, but they've expanded and now are a global organization with the majority of their work being 26:21 done in Southeast Asia and in Africa and India as well. 26:26 I think are kind of the main locations. 26:29 And so I've mentioned, I guess, a couple of the things they do, the outreach projects where they'll go into a region, gather all of blind people that they 26:39 can reach in that region and then do a week of cataract surgeries, just one after another. 26:45 And then they also want to build an infrastructure that can provide a more lasting benefit rather than just solving that one person's problem, 26:55 but rather curing the future as well, as you mentioned.
How to Support the Cure Blindness Project 27:00 There's a big problem in a lot of developing countries with vitamin A deficiency, and that leads to a huge cataract burden in the world. 27:09 And so there are, I believe they said, sometimes on order of 30 million people in blindness. 27:16 So it's a big project that they're working on, but the scale of their operation is impressive. 27:22 I don't know the number of countries, there are many, many countries. 27:24 If you look at the map, they are pretty broadly working and as I said, creating hospitals, create residencies and really making a huge difference out there. 27:35 And I love the perspective of thinking long term, not just that we're here to solve the blind inverse for these people that are having surgery this week, 27:42 but to develop systems, hospitals, residencies, training programs that can benefit tens of thousands, if not millions of people over time. 27:51 And that's like you said, your donation is going to not specifically cure the blindness for those individuals, to help establish a program that hopefully 28:00 for years and years down the road, you'll have people come through that. 28:03 then they can take care of folks as they come along and maybe not let it go so long or become so advanced. 28:09 Right. 28:10 Ghana has 200,000 blind people, as I mentioned, and they only had two ophthalmology residencies in the country. 28:17 And so this will add a third. 28:20 So in terms of the percentage of capacity, it's really a huge difference. 28:25 Oh, yeah. 28:26 Do they have a website or a social media page or how would folks find them? 28:31 They do. 28:32 I wish I knew it off the top of my head, I'm sure I can get that to you and we can put it in the notes. 28:38 Awesome. 28:39 But I think if you just search the Cure Blindness Project or even the Himalayan Cataract Project, it still comes up under that name as well. 28:46 Another question is, people are pretty interested in this story. 28:50 If somebody wants to contact you, do you maintain a LinkedIn page or do any way that folks could contact if they want to say, 28:56 hey, got to get a hold of Dr. 28:58 Clive. 28:59 Ask a little bit more about this. 29:01 Oh, sure. 29:01 So LinkedIn would be one way to find me. 29:04 I'm on Facebook. 29:05 My name is actually kind of rare. 29:06 And so there aren't many Stuart Clives out there and I am certainly the only Stuart clive physician. 29:16 Well, as we wrap up our time, I just want to summarize for a minute. 29:20 We've talked about the financial importance of being able to be prepared so you can do stuff, the importance integrating service throughout your career 29:29 so that you stay focused and keep your mind on making a difference on why you went into this, and then looking at some of the big ticket items. 29:36 You can make a different for tens of thousands or eventually maybe even hundreds of thousands or millions of people over a timeline, 29:44 even beyond your own lifespan, if you make this kind of an investment. 29:47 So it's really cool, it is really inspiring. 29:50 Are there any final thoughts you want to leave with our audience as we kind wrap up our time? 29:53 I just can't emphasize enough how it gets to your benefit.
Closing Reflections and Podcast Outro 30:00 I had a colleague who said, well, I guess you're going to heaven now. 30:03 That doesn't even come to my mind. 30:08 good person or benefiting from this in the future in that way, it's just a tremendous benefit now. 30:14 Yeah. 30:14 Well, and I think it makes us more whole as human beings. 30:18 If we look out for each other, we're not just focused on ourselves because when it all shakes out, you only get to be on this earth for a few decades at best. 30:25 And you hope that you've done some good with the time that your here and the legacy of service that this will show to your family, 30:33 your children, grandchildren. 30:34 I mean, that's worth more than the money it could buy as well. 30:37 So anyway, I applaud what you're doing and it's so neat and really appreciate you being willing to take the to share it. 30:43 Thank you very much. 30:45 I'm glad to be able to get the thoughts out there. 30:48 Thank You. 30:50 Thanks for tuning into the Doctors Making a Difference podcast. 30:53 And thank you for what you do to help your patients and your community. 30:56 Your work truly helps so many people. 30:59 We produce this content to have the tools you need to stay in medicine and to highlight the amazing work being done by physicians around the world. 31:06 Please note that while I am a physician and many of the guests on this program are also physicians or other professionals, 31:12 the discussions on the podcast do not represent my employer or any professional organizations to which I belong. 31:18 This podcast is for your information and entertainment only, and should not be taken as professional advice. 31:24 You should seek appropriate professional advise pertaining to your own situation. 31:28 Please check out more of our content on our website, DoctorsMakingADifference.com. 31:32 Also, please follow, like, or subscribe on your podcast player or YouTube channel, and give us a five-star rating. 31:39 It really helps to spread the message. 31:41 Finally, if you'd like to be a guest on the podcast, Or if would like nominate someone else to a be guest, Please visit the website or email admin at Doctors 31:50 Making A Difference dot com. 31:52 See you next time.
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