Over the course of the four-year study, the prevalence of blindness and visual impairment in the community was reduced by nearly 62 per cent.   

It’s confirmation that Operation Eyesight’s focus on strengthening local health systems and empowering communities to look after their own eye health is not only effective, but also sustainable.  

“We have known for some time that the presence of vision centres in a community, supported by door-to-door outreach, has a measurable impact on health outcomes for patients and families,” explains Kashinath Bhoosnurmath, our President & CEO and co-author of the study.  

“Data like this only helps us become more effective in achieving our mission of preventing blindness and restoring sight.” 

The study looked at approximately 44,000 people living in an urban slum area in Pune, Maharashtra, India, who were surveyed at a four-year interval by local health workers in the community. Patients identified as having vision loss were referred to Operation Eyesight’s local vision centre partner for more comprehensive examination and treatment if necessary.  

Vision centres also have referral pathways in place for patients who require referral to hospital for surgery or additional treatment.

Over the course of the four-year study, led by Community for Eye Care Foundation, Pune and our team in in India, 8,211 patients were examined at the local vision centre. During this time, the prevalence of blindness due to conditions such as cataracts decreased from 0.25 per cent to 0.1 per cent over four years, and visual impairment decreased from 0.16 per cent to 0.05 per cent.  

Building a lasting presence in the community 

Vision centres are permanent facilities, established in strategic locations within a project area and staffed by trained eye health personnel. In addition to linking the community with the hospital, vision centres also provide eye exams, dispense prescription eyeglasses and refer patients for specialized treatment if needed. Vision centres are critical hubs for communities that do not have access to the most basic of eye healthcare, either due to economic or geographic factors.  

“By providing access to prescription eyeglasses, eye health screening and referral to hospital, the decrease in rates of visual impairment and blindness in this community can be attributed to the presence of the local vision centre,” explains Bhoosnurmath.   

Operation Eyesight’s focus on involving the community at every stage of a project has ensured the sustainability of our vision centres. This includes ensuring that demand is in place for the vision centre’s services and that a flow of revenue will fund the provision of services long-term.    

Operation Eyesight has established 160+ new vision centres across India. Most vision centres become self-funding within six months of operation.  

Recruiting eye health champions 

“The key to the success of vision centres is our ability to recruit local community health workers who provide door-to-door eye health screening,” says Soumya Moosa, one of our Program Managers in India and co-author of the study.    

Moosa says this type of grassroots outreach in the community is particularly beneficial to health outcomes for women. 

“The study found that women continue to have a higher prevalence of blindness and are less likely to seek care in low-income communities like the one surveyed. This is why the counselling by local female health workers is so pivotal to the project’s success.”

To learn more about our work in India, visit operationeyesight.com/india/  

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Equally remarkable is how this project was accomplished through friendship between Canadians and Ghanaians. It started some years ago when Operation Eyesight became acquainted with ophthalmologist Dr. Boateng Wiafe. Our original support for Watborg Eye Services grew into an enduring relationship with Bo, leading to his appointment in 2009 as Operation Eyesight’s Regional Director for Africa.

More recently, the Taylor family of Calgary came to learn of Bo’s work, and they agreed to work with him to build something new. Don Taylor is president of Engineered Air, a market leader in heating, ventilation and air conditioning in North America. His son Cameron, who attended the opening, is president of Sherwood International Capital Limited. This family has a deep concern for the people threatened by blindness in Africa, and their generosity was a major factor in the completion of the new Watborg Eye Services facility.

To put this in perspective, I’d like to quote Pat Ferguson, president and CEO of Operation Eyesight: “The Taylors’ very generous donation for Watborg’s new facilities will strengthen Ghana’s eye care system and ensure those living in the area, regardless of income, have access to the best possible care. Operation Eyesight is focused on building support for sustainable eye health initiatives among threatened populations in Africa and India. For the poor in these countries, visual impairment is more than a disability – it’s a direct threat to life.”

Speaking of Canadians who care about Ghana, we’d also like to thank the Government of Canada which also made a large investment in the project through the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).

Now that the hospital has reached this major milestone, Watborg’s ongoing success will depend upon excellence in day-to-day running. Much of that will fall to the nurses, of which I was one myself once. May 6 to 12 is International Nurses Week – a time to recognize the many contributions that these professionals make in the smooth running of any medical facility. I know Dr. Wiafe would agree with me. Best of luck to them all.

The post Celebrating a new hospital in Ghana (Part 2) appeared first on Operation Eyesight.

Our regional director for Africa, Ghanaian ophthalmologist Dr. Boateng Wiafe, has worked closely with the ministries of health in Zambia, Kenya, Rwanda and Ghana for many years. He and his staff have discovered that such collaboration within existing health systems encourages local leaders to manage their own affairs, while creating models that can be replicated in other regions.

“Operation Eyesight empowers Africans to take care of Africans,” he says.

In her 2009 book, The Challenge for Africa: A New Vision, the late Kenyan activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai wrote, “The challenge for [Africa’s] leaders, both governmental and nongovernmental, is to acknowledge and then channel Africans’ capabilities and energies into effective action for development.”

We believe international non-governmental organizations (INGOs) that choose to support and build on resident expertise can create long-term sustainable solutions that respect and steward the talents and abilities inherent in Africans. Developing countries understand their social and economic challenges and usually have the expertise to solve their own problems. They may only lack sufficient human and financial resources, and that’s where we can help.

Operation Eyesight has had notable success using these strategies. We invite other INGOs to contact us to learn more about our approach to sustainable development.

We have many great stories to share with you about the difference our donors have made in Africa and India… check out our success stories today!

The post Options are available to help developing African countries (Part 2 of 2) appeared first on Operation Eyesight.

A 74-year old Roman Catholic nun from the Kaiboi convent, 50 km outside Eldoret, Sister Cecilia speaks English very well. She was booked into the hospital’s eye unit for bilateral cataract surgery on her left eye; and although she seemed very calm on the surface, she confided that she was worried about her upcoming surgery that morning. Her eyes, one with a misty blue-grey cataract clearly visible, were apprehensive.

“I was a teacher at the convent for a long time. I taught religious instruction. I do pastoral work these days in my old age, because I can’t see even with my glasses now. I’m hoping for the best with this surgery.”

I saw Sister Cecilia later that day after her operation. Her eye was covered with a bandage and she said it felt sore and swollen, but Dr. Isaac Wanjala assured her that when he removed the coverings in the morning, she should be able to see. He said she should return to the eye unit for a check-up the following month.

The next day, I visited a bandage-free Sister Cecilia again. When I asked her how her vision was, she smiled warmly and shook my hand. “I can see many things now. Even my watch is clear!” she said, holding up her arm with a plain wristwatch on it. “I was afraid, but now I’m all right. I can see again – thank you!”

For only $30, you can give the gift of sight to someone like Sister Cecilia who needs cataract surgery. Visit our Gift Guide to learn how.

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