Nigeria

Nigeria is a country that is rich in natural resources and has a fast growing economy, yet the majority of people are denied access to basic amenities such as healthcare and water. As the eighth most populous country in the world, the problems surrounding access are ever increasing. Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) find it difficult to work in this country and many shy away from here due to the political unrest. There is one NGO however, working tirelessly in this country to provide free healthcare, eye-care and safe drinking water to the rural populations. The Savitri Trust partnered with Tulsi Chanrai Foundation (TCF) in 2005 to help alleviate poverty in Nigeria through curing the blind.

Cataract Blindness in Nigeria

Nigeria’s rural communities have a high incidence of ocular problems which are both preventable and curable. Cataract, glaucoma, refractive errors, vitamin A deficiencies all lead to visual impairment in adults and children. Unfortunately, the facilities to address these problems are alarmingly low in Nigeria.

The Federal Ministry of Health’s National Program for Prevention of Blindness undertook a survey over the period 2005-2007 and released a report stating that more than 1 million adults (above the age of 40) in Nigeria are totally blind, of which 50% is due to Cataract.

Ophthalmic facilities are scarce and expensive. The majority of people with cataract are unable to bear the ophthalmologist’s fees and will resort to help from the unlicensed practitioners. These ‘doctors’ indulge in a primitive and dangerous method of treatment called as couching (the use of a sharp and blunt object, forcefully applied on the eye to push the lens to the back of the eye).

Project Implementation

Drawing from the expertise of its sister organisation in India who has supported more than 600,000 free eye surgeries in that last 20 years, Mission for Vision initiated the eye program in Nigeria in 2002 in collaboration with State Governments. Mission for Vision Nigeria, has since expanded to four hospitals performing over 15,000 free high-quality surgeries per annum and till date performed over 48,000 free eye surgeries.
 

Kebbi Eye Centre   Yola Eye Centre   Calabar Eye Centre   Owerri Eye Centre

Preliminary screening conducted in rural communities identifies patients with cataract. These patients undergo complete medical and ophthalmological examination in the hospital.

The state-of-art surgery is performed in the eye centres by qualified surgeons. The surgery involves sutureless surgery using an intra-ocular lens (IOL). The patient is kept in the hospital for two days before being discharged. Post-operative follow ups are undertaken to ensure that the patient has recovered good vision.

Cost of Surgery

The total cost of a surgery is £40, the services are provided absolutely free to the patients. One hundred percent of any donation received for this cause, will go directly to cover the actual cost of the surgery for the beneficiaries, as all other administrative costs are met by the trustees of TCF and the Savitri Trust.