Working with our implementing partner, the Seva Foundation, we provide medically underserved people in Asia, Africa, and Latin America basic eye care and sight-restoring surgery. Most blindness is reversible. Cataracts, the leading cause of vision loss, are treatable through a simple 15-minute procedure delivered for only ~$50 in the developing world, making it one of the most cost-effective life-changing medical interventions.
These surgeries, performed free by teams of local specialists often trained by Seva or with Seva’s support, take place at temporary eye camps, clinics, and hospitals.
Each time the bandages are removed the day following surgery and a formerly blind person can see again, it is a small miracle. And often, the blind person is looking at a child or grandchild who has been responsible for the care of his or her relative. Not only can the person with renewed sight resume a productive life, but the caregiver can return to school or work. Thus, each procedure changes the lives of at least two people.
90% of all blindness occurs in the developing world.
75% of blindness is preventable or treatable.
Half of the world’s blindness is caused by cataracts.
Cataract surgery is one of the most cost-effective, life-changing medical interventions; the challenge is to make it widely available.