With four young children, 28-year-old Varsha’s household is very busy. In addition to looking after the children, Varsha also kept busy as a tailor. She enjoyed sewing clothes, and the money she earned was an important contribution to her family’s income.
Varsha started to experience problems with her vision, along with severe headaches. These problems came about suddenly and became worse over the following months. There were days when she had to stay in bed due to the pain, and she became very concerned about her family’s finances, as it was getting to the point where she could no longer work to support her family.
Things turned around for Varsha when she was visited by Hemlata, an Operation Eyesight-trained community health worker. Hemlata referred her to the Ahmedpur Vision Centre for a comprehensive eye exam. Vision centres are permanent facilities staffed by trained eye health personnel that act as a link between communities and staffed by trained eye health personnel. Located in areas where the need for quality eye health care is high, they provide eye exams, dispense prescription eyeglasses and refer patients to the hospital when necessary. Vision centres provide a way to reach people who have previously been unreached.
At the vision centre, Varsha was diagnosed with refractive error, and she was given a pair of custom prescription eyeglasses that corrected her vision, thanks to our donors. This simple and inexpensive tool instantly restored her vision, and with her vision corrected, her headaches also went away.
Varsha is so happy that she no longer has to worry about having enough money to support her children. She looks forward to a happy and healthy future for them, and she now knows where to go for help if one of them should suffer from a health condition.
This Mother’s Day, you can bring relief to a mother like Varsha by restoring her sight. Please donate to Operation Eyesight to help prevent blindness and restore sight for women and girls. Every dollar will be used to ensure they get the quality eye health care they need right now, and well into the future. You can choose to make a donation in the name of your own grandmother or mother or another important woman in your life.