Cataracts – A leading cause of blindness

Cash Donation For Non Itemizers : Cataracts are one of the leading causes of blindness around the world. With cataracts, over time eyes develop cloudy patches, blurring one’s vision gradually and eventually causing blindness. Anyone can develop cataracts, however, it is more common in elderly adults as their health deteriorates with age.

Although cataracts affect both rich and poor, it’s sadly the poorer communities who are most affected by the blindness. This is a direct result of lack of access to adequate healthcare.

In poorer communities, when one adult is afflicted with cataracts disease, unfortunately, the whole family is affected. With limited vision and eventual blindness, the adult affected is increasingly unable to continue life as normal. This means, not being able to go out and work, earn an income and feed the family. Many children end up leaving school and start working to help feed the family to survive and therefore, miss out on their education.

Solutions

Doctors can go in and remove the cloudy patches that cause the loss of vision. However, this surgery costs money that poorer communities are unable to afford.

With our blindness prevention Waqf share, we aim to provide as many free cataract surgeries as possible for those individuals who cannot afford it. In Sudan, where poverty is high, we have provided medical equipment to the Khartoum Eye Teaching Hospital which can carry out on average 40 surgeries a day in their medical theatres.

Meet Husna

Husna is a 72-year-old farmer and widow who was afflicted with cataracts. She was one of the people we helped at the hospital in Khartoum, here’s what she had to say:

“I suffered from cataracts in my right eye for five years. Last year, it got worse and I almost lost my vision and had to get it treated. I was hesitant because I can’t afford the surgery.  travelled from my home town in Kordofan State to Khartoum for treatment. I went to a private facility where the doctor recommended I have surgery in the Khartoum Eye Hospital. The hospital provides medical services without charge.” 

When Husna lost her vision in her eye, it became difficult for her to work and bring home an income to support her family. Husna’s quality of life has improved and she now able to continue working to support her family.

Husna is among the thousands of people to have directly benefited from the medical equipment we provided to the Khartoum Eye Teaching Hospital (KETH).

Donate today and help give the gift of sight by contributing to a blindness prevention Waqf share.