Teacher is “mother of cleanliness” to her students

| By Lynne Dulaney, Former Director of Communications
Categories: Clean Water, Kenya, Our Work
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Trachoma is a blinding eye disease that is prevalent in Kenya’s Narok District. Caused by bacterial infection, it spreads easily through contact with eye discharge from infected people on hands, towels and clothing, and also through direct transmission by flies. But trachoma can be prevented with proper sanitation – and Sarah Kiruri, a teacher at… Continue Reading Teacher is “mother of cleanliness” to her students

Overcoming flies, cows and 30 km to save sight

| By Kashinath Bhoosnurmath, Global Director, Programmes
Categories: Clean Water, Kenya, Our Work
| Tags: ,
Thirty kilometres may not seem like a big distance to us, but it was a huge barrier for Norkitoip, a 45-year-old Kenyan mother of eight. Norkitoip was afflicted with trichiasis, a condition whereby repeated trachoma infections turned her eyelashes inward to rub her cornea. Although she described it as “painful and uncomfortable,” she and her… Continue Reading Overcoming flies, cows and 30 km to save sight

The SAFE way to end trachoma

| By Kashinath Bhoosnurmath, Global Director, Programmes
Categories: Clean Water, Our Work, Zambia
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In Kenya and Zambia, Operation Eyesight is implementing the World Health Organization-endorsed SAFE strategy to treat and ultimately eliminate the blinding eye disease, trachoma. SAFE includes Surgery to treat trichiasis (the painful late stage of the disease), Antibiotics to eliminate infection, Face washing and hygiene education, and Environmental change including wells and latrines. As the… Continue Reading The SAFE way to end trachoma

Teacher learns how to help students get an A+ in eye health

| By Kashinath Bhoosnurmath, Global Director, Programmes
Categories: Kenya, Our Work, Prevention
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Janeffer Chepchumba has been teaching at Uhuru Primary School in Nakuru County, Kenya for seven years. In 2013, she added a new topic to her students’ curriculum: eye health. Last fall, the Seeing is Believing Child Eye Health Project, one of our partnerships with Standard Chartered Bank, began training teachers of sighted children in Nakuru… Continue Reading Teacher learns how to help students get an A+ in eye health

Smart phone app developed to screen for vision problems

| By Lynne Dulaney, Former Director of Communications
Categories: Kenya, Our Work, Prevention
| Tags: , , ,
Tackling childhood blindness and visual impairment in low-income countries presents considerable challenges. Infrastructure and human resources are seriously lacking, and systems for accurately testing children for eye conditions and improving follow-up rates are often non-existent or inadequate. If there was a way to improve the way that children’s eyesight is screened and treated across low-income… Continue Reading Smart phone app developed to screen for vision problems