We believe that all children should be able to play, learn, and grow. Unfortunately, according to the World Health Organization, an estimated 1.4 million children globally are blind, and 19 million live with some form of visual impairment. At Seva, we know that to create a world free of avoidable childhood blindness, we must screen children for vision impairment as early as possible and identify and provide treatment to those in need. This means meeting and screening children where they are – at schools, at home, and in their community.
Photo: A Rohingya refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar District.
Today, as you and your family reflect on the changes our world is going through, know that your compassion has reached into one of the most forgotten places on Earth.
Over the last decade, nearly one million Rohingya people have fled their homeland of Myanmar to escape what the UN refers to as the military’s ethnic cleansing. In late 2017, one of the worst human rights violations of the decade sent hundreds of thousands of women and girls, boys, and men into neighboring Bangladesh. Crammed into makeshift shelters in Cox’s Bazar district, the Rohingya refugees are one of the most densely packed populations on earth living in what is now the largest refugee camp in the world.
Upon reaching Bangladesh, the sheer number of Rohingya overwhelmed the local resources, resulting in a lack of access to clean water, sanitation, nutrition, shelter, and health care, including eye care. For the Rohingya, a lifetime without proper access to eyecare means a high rate of preventable blindness and vision loss. According to our study, ten thousand refugees living in the area need cataract surgery today. Every year three thousand more will. On top of this, seventy-five thousand refugees need glasses.
Seva is committed to providing access to eye care in this region.
Celebrating Excellence in Eye Care Training for 12 years in July, 2019.
There are millions of people in the world in need of eye care services and not enough trained eye care professionals to provide care. Your generous support enables us to provide critical training for ophthalmic support staff. These individuals are professionally trained vision care workers who assist ophthalmologists and optometrists with routine clinical or non-clinical activities. With their assistance, ophthalmologists can focus on more advanced and complex cases. Together, they can provide care to more people, more efficiently.
But who trains the trainers? How do we make sure the teachers are giving their students the best information across the board? Eyexcel is how.
Even in the middle of a global pandemic, millions of people around the world need access to basic eye care services. At Seva, we are grateful for your support and the hard work, dedication, and determination of our wonderful global partners who go the extra mile to ensure that underserved communities have the support they need – especially today, during this challenging time.
On June 21, 2020, our partner in Bangladesh – Ispahani Islamia Eye Institute and Hospital (IIEIH) ‘e-inaugurated’ a new eye clinic in Lalmohan supported by Seva. Lalmohan, located in the southern district of Barisal, had very few vision care resources to serve its almost 300,000 residents. As most of the population there earns a low income, the closest eye hospital, which is located 63 miles (102 Kms) away, becomes very difficult and costly to visit.
The IBD team connects with Seva over a Zoom call for their consulting project’s final presentation.
An eye hospital transforms lives by restoring sight every day. But managing one is a challenging, sometimes overwhelming task. Now, imagine trying to do it in an isolated, rural part of the developing world! Where would you find administrative staff? How would you train them to use databases or manage payroll? How would you attract patients who can afford to pay for their care so that you can remain financially above-water? These are some of the critical questions that Seva’s partners have to answer as they work to provide safe long-term eye care to their communities sustainably.
Luckily, thanks to the support of donors like you, Seva and UC Berkeley have been able to help!
We entered our new fiscal year on July 1st – and thanks to you, we were able to do so with courage, hope, and compassion.
Together, we have crossed new boundaries every year, reaching millions of people with essential eye care services. This year – you did much more! You walked with us – hand in hand – to ensure that our medical partners have the resources they need to recover and re-enter from the pandemic. Your support allowed people living in remote communities around the world to receive the care they needed, especially now when they’re at their most vulnerable during the pandemic.
On a recent Friday morning, Seva hosted a Cyber Synergy Series session with world-class experts – Dr. Larry Brilliant, Dr. Samina Zamindar, and Dr. Lucia Silva, to explain in layman’s language what we can expect to see in the coming weeks and months with COVID-19, and how best we can cope with it.
