Hvhc Ophthalmologist Travels to Haiti on Mission

CORTLANDT MANOR, N.Y. – When Dr. Kayvan Keyhani traveled to the Philippines in 2010 to perform ocular surgery on a remote island six hours from mainland Manila, he didn’t know what to expect.

As Keyhani heads to rural Haiti in February he has a better idea of what to expect. “People traveled for days to get to our clinic and then waited on line for hours just to see us,” said Keyhani, who practices in Yorktown Heights and is a Somers resident. “The trouble with a lot of these third world countries is that there is little or no health care, especially in rural areas. It is very difficult.”

Keyhani is travelling with Hands Up for Haiti, a humanitarian medical aid organization. Keyhani specializes in reconstructive oculoplastic surgery, like the repair of eyelids that turn in (entropion) or out (ectropion). On this trip, he will concentrate on performing plastic surgery on children who were born with birth defects of the eye.

The 10 day mission will visit rural Cap Haitien, about three hours from Port Au Prince, on the northeast coast of Haiti. Local physicians will join Keyhani’s team and have already supplied him with some photos of the patients.

“The pictures of these people are really striking, some of them terrible,” Keyhani said. “Haiti is among some of the poorest countries so there is little medical care available.”

“I commend Dr. Keyhani and all of our staff who donate their time and expertise to helping those in need,” said John C. Federspiel, HVHC president. “Hudson Valley Hospital Center has a culture which encourages our medical staff to perform community service.”

This will be Keyhani’s first time travelling to Haiti to perform surgery, and his third medical mission. He travelled to the Philippines in March 2010, and again in February 2011. He said both were very rewarding experiences and he expects the Haiti mission to be equally rewarding.

Keyhani attended medical school at Ohio State University of Medicine and completed his residency at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary. He completed his fellowship at the University of Vermont, Ophthalmic Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery. His offices are at 3505 Hill Boulevard in Yorktown Heights.

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