Eyes on Service: Optometry Students Bring Care to Rural Tennessee Families

MCPHS students help 250 patients see better—many for the first time in years.

For some people, “remote area” might evoke images of faraway jungles or isolated deserts. But for the Student Volunteer Optometric Services to Humanity (SVOSH) club at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS), “remote” referred to the city of Cookeville, TN.

Based on the Worcester campus and composed of students in the Doctor of Optometry program, the group routinely conducts eye exams in the community and also hosts an annual service trip to Nicaragua. This March, they partnered with Remote Area Medical, a nonprofit organization that provides pop-up clinics with free medical care. Over the course of a weekend, 10 students and two faculty members helped give full-service eye exams to about 250 patients.

"A lot of people there hadn't had their eyes examined in years or since the last time RAM hosted this clinic in Cookeville,” said Sierra O’Keefe, OD ’26, the student group’s president.

According to the U.S. Census, just over 23 percent of Cookeville's population of 34,842 lives below the poverty line, making consistent access to medical care a challenge for some residents. O’Keefe noted that many patients who visited the pop-up clinic that weekend had previously relied on services provided by Remote Area Medical.

“Some even set up tents since 5 p.m. the day before, getting in line early so that they could make sure they got access. It felt bigger than an eye exam because this was really necessary for some people,” O’Keefe said.

Dental, optometric, and medical services were available at the clinic. Some patients went to the dental clinic before coming to the optometry area, which led to a surprising experience for O’Keefe and the others who were conducting eye exams.

“Some patients had their teeth pulled literally right before coming to us. So, we were giving them eye exams while they had gauze in their mouth and were having a difficult time talking. It just goes to show they were really using the opportunity to get all of the services,” O’Keefe said.

The optometry students also gained new perspectives from working side-by-side with faculty.

“Working with a professor in a clinical setting is a little different from working with them in an environment like this. It was nice to feel more like colleagues and bounce ideas off each other, like when people had prescriptions that were way off from what they were supposed to have. You got to say, ‘This is what I’m thinking; what are you thinking?’” O’Keefe said.

O’Keefe said she left the trip with a renewed appreciation for volunteer service and her profession.

“One young patient that I was talking to, who had been coming to clinics for years, was explaining to me how grateful he was to be able to do his daily activities with his glasses. I remember being a kid and hating to wear my glasses, but then you look at something like this and you realize how much you take for granted,” O’Keefe said.

"For me, this definitely re-inspired my love for optometry and making a difference,” she added.