We’ve been working in Kerala since 1973, as part of our long-term development strategy to eliminate avoidable blindness in India.” While we’re not a disaster relief organization, Little Flower Hospital came to us, explaining the severity of the situation and asking us for help. We already have the processes and resources in place to provide immediate eye care to those in need, and we’re eager to help.

Hit by monsoon rains and torrential downpours, Kerala received over 222 cm of rainfall (40 per cent more than average) between June and August this year. Roads have been washed out and 80 per cent of the state was without electricity for almost a week. Homes were destroyed, leaving millions of people displaced and without any of their possessions, including their eyeglasses.

With the spread of waterborne bacteria, there is already a reported rise in eye infections – but people are unable to access eye care services for medicine or treatment. To make matters worse, there is a shortage of ophthalmic personnel and people are also unable to access their money to pay for services.

“We’re grateful to our donors who have given generously to our Greatest Needs Fund in the past, trusting us to put their donations to good use where it’s most needed in our work,” says Aly Bandali, our President & CEO. “This gives us the flexibility to be able to respond to situations like this.”

Little Flower Hospital has started conducting medical camps in relief camp sites, however, their resources are extremely limited, and thousands of people in need of medical assistance are being left out. Our team in India already has a plan in place to reach those who are unable to access, or afford, eye care services right now.

“We’ve started mapping out the areas where the need is greatest and will soon be mobilizing community outreach teams,” says Dr. Santosh Moses, our Regional Manager in South Asia. “At the health camps, we’ll screen people for eye problems and provide free eye care treatment for those in need. We’ll provide antibiotics to treat infection, new prescription eyeglasses, surgical treatment and other eye services as needed.”

Our organization has been working with Little Flower Hospital since 1975. As an international development organization, we’ve supported the establishment of the hospital’s eye department, enabling Little Flower Hospital to perform the first corneal transplantations in India. In addition, we’ve worked with eight other local eye hospitals in the past, at one point covering 10 out of the 14 districts in the state.

While we aim to integrate eye care services into the country’s existing infrastructure and ultimately help partner hospitals become self-sustaining, we’re also able to utilize its existing partnerships to react quickly to events such as the Kerala floods.

Your support means so much to so many! To help us to continue our sight-saving work in Africa and South Asia, you can donate $5 by texting “EYESIGHT” to 45678 or by going to our donation page.

The post Worst floods in a century have left people vulnerable, without access to eye care appeared first on Operation Eyesight.

I sympathize. The year really has flown by, and GivingTuesday is only two weeks away! Many of our supporters have already made donations, and we can’t thank you enough.

By now, you may know that four out of five cases of blindness or low vision are treatable or even preventable. Many of the people we help simply need a pair of prescription eyeglasses to improve their vision – and their chances for a better life.

So put yourself in their shoes: what if you couldn’t afford to buy eyeglasses — or even pay for an eye exam? What if you didn’t have access to quality eye care at all?

Sadly, that’s the reality for many children, women and men in developing countries. They suffer from “low vision,” which means their eyesight is so limited that they see only dim shapes. They are virtually blind – yet their families are so poor that they can’t afford to visit an eye hospital or pay for eyeglasses. (And that’s assuming eye care services are even available where they live!)

It’s very sad, isn’t it? But take heart – many of the people we help simply need a pair of prescription eyeglasses to improve their vision – and their chances for a better life.

And here’s the best news of all: For only $20, you can provide up to three people with life-changing prescription eyeglasses! Your generous donation can bring three people’s worlds into focus! By raising $25,000, we can help up to 3,750 see their futures in focus!

It’s true! Prescriptions vary in cost somewhat, but in general, we can provide new, custom-fitted eyeglasses for up to three people for only $20.

Please donate to our GivingTuesday page today – and help us give thousands of children, women and men a chance to see a brighter future. They simply won’t have one without you!

The post You can’t buy happiness… but you can provide eyeglasses! appeared first on Operation Eyesight.

Ruth is an 11-year-old girl who lives with her family in a town in the Eastern Region of Ghana. Ruth’s father moved to Ghana’s capital city of Accra in search of new opportunities, and now Ruth lives with her mother and her two siblings in a room rented in an apartment compound.

Ruth’s mother Dora is the breadwinner of the family. She takes care of her family with the little profit she makes from selling food to the students at Ruth’s junior high school.

When our Operation Eyesight staff interviewed Ruth’s teachers, they said that she is a hard-working student. Sadly, Ruth had trouble with her vision, and her teachers told us that they knew she would excel at her studies if she could see the board better.

Ruth often complained of not seeing clearly from far away. She struggled to see the blackboard in her class even though she sat in the front row. Embarrassed, she had no choice but to ask her classmates if she could copy their notes.

Ruth’s mother and her teachers were saddened as they watched her struggle at school for more than four years. Unfortunately, Ruth’s mother wasn’t making enough money to afford treatment for her daughter. She felt helpless.

“I wondered why I could not see things that others could see. I was afraid I would go blind in the future!” Ruth said despairingly. What if she became a burden to her family? If she couldn’t see, she couldn’t study, and if she didn’t finish school, she wouldn’t be able to get a job when she was older. 

But then everything changed! One day, an eye doctor came to Ruth’s school to run a vision screening program. Ruth was diagnosed with refractive error. Yet, although the doctor assured Ruth that new eyeglasses would help her, at first she didn’t want them.

“People say that if you are young and you wear spectacles, your vision will only get worse. I was also worried my friends would laugh at me if I wore spectacles.”

After some counselling from the eye doctor, Ruth finally agreed to have her eyesight tested so a new pair of prescription eyeglasses could be ordered for her. Thanks to the generous donations of people like you, Ruth has since received her eyeglasses, completely free of charge to her family, and she’s so grateful!

“I am very happy. Now I know that I can do everything by myself. I want to thank the doctor and the generous people in Canada who made it possible for me to receive eyeglasses. God bless them for their kindness!”

We can’t thank you enough for your support. There are other young girls like Ruth who need your help. You can donate to our prescription eyeglasses program today, and bring more lives like Ruth’s into focus!

The post A pair of eyeglasses restores a girl’s future and independence! appeared first on Operation Eyesight.

Patients, dignitaries, eye health care staff and partners organizations joined the celebratory events for World Sight Day in Elgeyo Marakwet County, Kenya on October 12.

Kevin, along with classmates and other grateful patients participated in the first-ever World Sight Day celebrations where he lives in Elgeyo Marakwet County. The full day began with a 1.5 km walk from Iten Referral Hospital to the Iten playground. The Simbolei Academy school band led the way, accompanied by children from the Chepsigot School of visually impaired. The Chepsigot children entertained the audience with songs and poems about eye health.

After the walk, an eye screening and treatment camp was held that screened and treated 368 patients. Another 78 patients were referred to the eye unit for further examination. Guests heard patient testimonies and key speakers from Operation Eyesight’s many partners.

Alice Mwangi, Operation Eyesight Country Manager, was proud to recognize Operation Eyesight’s partnerships, especially Standard Chartered Bank’s Seeing is Believing. “With the help of our partners, Operation Eyesight has renovated the eye unit that has screened more than 40,000 people and treated over 20,000 patients for various eye conditions.”

Mwangi says that in September 2017, 22 community health workers were trained to conduct door-to-door screening in Kapchemutwa ward. Since then, more than 20,000 people have been screened, helping us reach our goal of ensuring eye health care becomes part of regular health care.

Key guests at the event included:

• Deputy Governor of Elgeyo Marakwet County Mr. Wesley Rotich;
• Chief Officer of Health Dr. Titus Ayabei;
• Country Director of Medical Services Dr. Isaac Kipyego;
• Medical Superintendent of Iten Referral Hospital Dr. Castro Mugalla;
• Sub county Director of Education, Mr. William Kipchumba

The Chief Officer of Health, Dr. Titus Ayabei, announced the exciting news that the county government has established a sub-county eye unit in Chepkorio hospital. The government will provide staffing for the hospital, and he urged people to support the facility for much needed eye care equipment.

Ayabei encouraged people to go for regular eye checkups and Mwangi agrees. “I hope all our patients will help us help others by becoming eye health care ambassadors and creating community awareness about proper eye health care,” says Mwangi.

As for young Kevin, he’s grateful for having his sight back. “Thanks to my doctors, I’m not struggling anymore.”

You can help kids like Kevin by donating today.

The post World Sight Day has special meaning for one little boy appeared first on Operation Eyesight.