Did you know that a simple allergy to dust can lead to blindness?
I didn’t either until I met this little girl.
She had an allergy to dust. Her mom said that she cried all the time because her eyes itched and hurt all the time. We had 46 people waiting for eye surgeries, but Laurie, our Medical Director said that this little girl was our first priority. Even though an allergy to dirt doesn’t sound like a big deal, if it went untreated, she could go blind from it. Laurie gave her eye drops and told her mom to give them to her every day.
We take so much for granted in the first world. We can go get eye drops whenever we want, but that’s not the case in rural Africa.
Our team does more than just eye surgeries, they do a lot of health education in the villages to help prevent further eye disease and complications. Something like this seems so simple, but it goes a long way in preventative eye health. Our team is also able to educate patients in keeping their eyes clean, noticing red flags of other diseases, and simply wearing sunglasses to protect their eyes.
When you donate to Sight.org, you give more than just eye surgeries, you contribute to health education as well.