Free Eye Camps

The purpose of a Free Eye Camp is prevention of blindness. This work is done either at a hospital or in a rural area through an Eye Screening Camp. These are free clinics at which hundreds of people can have their eyes examined. Simple problems are treated on the spot. Patients with more serious conditions are given transportation free of charge to the base hospital for treatment.

Free Eye-Camps are held regularly to treat more and more needy people of the locality. This makes eye care accessible for people who otherwise would not receive it – the poorest of the poor.

Upon arrival the Free Eye Camp team arranges registration of every patient so that no one leaves without being checked. Registration also serves the purpose as a journal for every patient. Each patient is handed a number so that each patient is treated in order of arrival.

On “Eye-Camp Day”, the mission team often works 10-12 hours a day, testing vision and screening for eye problems. Of the many hundreds that come to our Eye-camps, only those patients are chosen who are eligible to be operated. Selection is necessary since there is no need to operate on a healthy eye. A cataract needs to be removed only when vision loss interferes with ones everyday activities, such as driving, reading, or watching TV. If patients nevertheless do complain of pain, these are given free eye-drops that can relieve the pain.

The best-qualified recipients are operated. After every operation we conduct vision screenings. Having performed fittings and adjustments, we donate new glasses to the patient.

At the end of the day, grueling as it may have been, it is nevertheless worth every effort to see the joy and satisfaction on the faces and in the words of the people whom we help. See images.

In the days following every Eye-Camp, Patient Welfare Society recieves many stories offering a close-up view of not only the contributions made by our volunteers but also the individual anecdotes that bring home the value of such efforts. Some of these stories follow:

REAL PLAYER (interviews with patients) – Coming Soon!