Radio reaches those in dire need

Categories: Communities, Eye Surgery, Our Work, Zambia

Have you ever found that sometimes, the simplest messages are the most heartfelt? Let me tell you about Dawson, 72, and Anisa, 68. This elderly couple live in a tiny one room thatched house in the village of Kajilo, located in Zambia’s North-Western Province. Until quite recently, their lives were miserable because neither of them could… Continue Reading Radio reaches those in dire need

We must see through their eyes (Part 1 of 2)

Categories: Eye Surgery, Our Work
Have you ever wondered why Operation Eyesight is so big on quality? It’s a fair question. Why insist on high international standards for poor people? Isn’t just about anything better than what they have? To answer that, picture a tribal woman in a remote part of India, who is going blind from cataracts. She’s a… Continue Reading We must see through their eyes (Part 1 of 2)

Frontline workers reach remote patients in Africa (Part 2 of 2)

Categories: Communities, Kenya
Last week, I told you how many African countries are training frontline workers, including public health care staff, schoolteachers, midwives and traditional healers, to identify eye problems and other health concerns when they are working in the community. This type of community development program is highly effective in identifying health risks. When I was at… Continue Reading Frontline workers reach remote patients in Africa (Part 2 of 2)

A teacher learns that clear vision is possible again

Categories: Hospitals, Kenya
I met Sister Cecilia Chematia last year at Kenya’s Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in the small city of Eldoret. (Read more about my visit to the hospital here.) Operation Eyesight and its donors have supported the hospital’s eye unit since 2005. A 74-year old Roman Catholic nun from the Kaiboi convent, 50 km outside… Continue Reading A teacher learns that clear vision is possible again

A smile worth seeing

Categories: Eye Surgery, Kenya

Imagine losing your sight. It’s a highly emotional experience, even if the blindness is not trauma-related. With your vision gradually declining due to cataracts or other eye conditions, you’d feel sorrow, uncertainty and anxiety about the future. You’d naturally be apprehensive about eye surgery, yet eager for the possibility to be able to see again.… Continue Reading A smile worth seeing