Ramesh is a 60-year old daily wage farmer living in Naujheel, a town in the north of India. He earns a total of $6 to $7 per day with which he supports his three sons (all of whom are out-of-work) as well as their children. But a little over a year ago, his vision began to get blurry. Working in the fields became much more difficult, and before long he needed help to perform even basic household tasks. Ramesh didn’t know what to do. He didn’t have money to see a doctor and he needed his sight to make any money.
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Seva Programs Soar Past their Goals
Even in a year as challenging as 2020, Seva’s programs soared. Between June and December of last year, we supported six new vision centers. Now we’re on track to fund a total of 30 by June 30, 2021 (beating our goal of 13)! Our largest number of these new vision centers are in India; others are located in Nepal, Cambodia, Guatemala, Mexico, and Peru. This year also marks our first vision centers in Latin America!
Continue readingSeva launches a new workshop in Nepal and India to advance eye care solutions
At Seva, from our work with eye care professionals, hospitals, and partners in over 20+ countries, we’ve witnessed first hand the transformative power of community health. By partnering directly with the communities we serve to co-create innovative eye care solutions, we can reach more people with the sight-restoring treatment they need and, in turn, transform more lives.
Continue readingA conversation with Dr. Ashwini Kumar, a pediatric ophthalmologist in India
We believe that all children should be able to play, learn, and grow. Globally, at least 450 million children have a sight condition that needs treatment, with 90 million children living with some form of sight loss. 448 million children and adolescents have refractive errors. 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.
Continue readingSeva and UC Berkeley team up to support hospitals!
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!
Continue readingCOVID-19: Re-entry Insight?
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.
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