International Service ProjectGive Sight – Coimbatore, IndiaRotaract District 5170, U.S.A.

August 2007

Give Sight Project, India

Project Background and Initiation

Background:

– India is one of the largest contributors to the world’s blind population. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), over one fifth of the world’s blind population lives in India with around 4 million being added every year

• 45 million Indians are visually handicapped

• 12 million are totally blind

• Fortunately 80% of them can be cured

– The cure for the blindness that most people in India suffer from is as simple as a cataract surgery. In the United States, procedures such as cataract surgeries are routine; however, in India, due to lack of access or affordability, hundreds of thousands of people suffer from curable blindness

Initiation:

– Angel Kelchev, Rotaract District 5170 Governor and Pradeep Rajendran, President of Stanford Rotaract decided to organize a service project aiming to eradicate blindness in Coimbatore, India

– They gained the support of multiple Rotary and Rotaract clubs as well as corporate sponsors and other service organizations

– Local partner was needed to ensure effectiveness, scalability and sustainability of project:

• Sankara Eye Society – leading edge and experienced partner providing quality health care to all regardless of socioeconomic considerations

“Miracles cannot cure the blind, you can”

___________________________Source: www.sankaraeye.com

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Sankara Eye Society (SES) Introduction

Founded in the late 1970’s by Dr. R. V. Ramani, an ophthalmologist; the first hospital was built in Coimbatore, India Today, the 500 bed, state-of-the art, Sankara Eye Hospital in Coimbatore has grown to be the number one free eye care

hospital covering rural areas in India With over 100,000 eye surgeries annually and a rural outreach camp every week (not one week has been missed in the

last 25 years), the Sankara Eye Society has become a model institution that blends the leading medical technologies and practices in community eye care with the best practices in management and human resource development

Currently performing ~70,000 FREE eye surgeries per year and acknowledged as one of the largest rural outreach programs in India

Mission: Working towards freedom from preventable and curable blindness by providing unmatched eye care through a strong service oriented team

To establish eye banks and peripheral eye donor forums for different regions of India

SES objectivesTo always have quality as the sole criterion for all

activities

To provide the latest in diagnostic and surgical care

for eye diseases

To provide readily available cost-effective, quality eye

care to all

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Project Overview

Multiple Rotary and Rotaract clubs, as well as corporate sponsors and other service organizations like Phi Theta Kappa made it possible for $25,000 to be raised for the project

– Lehman Brothers employees from the Menlo Park office made donations in the form of 80,000 frequent flier miles to enable volunteers to fly to India and cash donations in the amount of $6,500, which were then matched by the Lehman Brothers Foundation

The funds were used for the purchase of essential medical equipment worth $25,000, which was donated to the Sankara Eye Hospital:

– Slit Lamp with Applanation

– Computerized Non contact Tonometer

– Direct Ophthalmoscope

– Streak Retinoscope

– Indirect Ophthalmoscopes Four volunteers from the US led by Pradeep Rajendran and Angel Kelchev traveled to Coimbatore, India to help the Sankara Eye Society and set up a field Eye Camp in Coimbatore, India 300 villagers with severe vision impairments were received at the Eye Camp and subjected to medical examinations After initial medical examinations in the Eye Camp, all 300 patients were transported to the hospital facilities, where they received free cataract surgeries and accommodation Pradeep, Angel and their team also cooked and served food to all of the villagers and the thirty additional volunteers supporting the Eye Camp

Goal: Partner with interested parties from all over the world to raise funds and organize an Eye Camp in Coimbatore, India

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The Story of Michael Anthony - One Out of So Many

This was Michael Antony He was two years old and lived in an orphanage in Vellore, India When Michael’s mother died giving birth to him, the superstitious villagers thought

that he was the cause of her death, pouring acid into his eyes From his birth, he was blind

Unlike other walks of life, medicine is blind to religion. Through medicine, we are able to break the boundaries we create

He was brought to Sankara Eye Hospital, where a matching pair of eyes were found Surgery was performed on him and he received a successful corneal transplant in both eyes

We were present when the bandages were removed from Michael’s eyes and he opened them for the first time

Never before have we seen someone so overjoyed to see his own shadow

A Christian boy was given the eyes of a Hindu child We learned that, unlike other walks of life, medicine is blind to religion. Through medicine and civic responsibility, we are able

to break the boundaries we create …..

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Photo Essay

Arrival at the Eye Camp …..

Commentary

Diagonal and Up: Angel and his team at the Eye Camp organized in an elementary school building three hours south of Coimbatore

Left: A Sankara Eye Center banner outlining the Rotary and Rotaract Clubs participating in the project

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The Women’s Leader …..

Commentary

Left: One of the leaders of the female groups

Up: She has the important task to explain to the rest of the female villagers who have walked for many hours to get to the Eye Camp, what is going to happen and to reassure them

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The Village Women …..

Commentary

Diagonal: One of the villagers tells the team how her vision deteriorated and how she heard about the Eye Camp from others who have received a cataract surgery. She has walked for hours to come to the Eye Camp and despite her fear she is determined to undergo the surgery and hopes to be able to work again

Up and Left: A widow has brought her son with her. She needs to also undergo a cataract surgery in order to be able to work and support her son

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The Men …..

Commentary

All: The men sit separately from the women. They are excited to meet the volunteers and thank them for funding and organizing the Eye Camp. They tell them about their problems and about being given back hope that they will be able to see, work and support their families

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Vision Tests …..

Commentary

All: All of the villagers undergo vision tests. Most of them cannot read the charts and are assisted by the two staff members so that their vision capabilities can be accurately assessed

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Examinations Continue …..

Commentary

All: The villagers are thoroughly examined to determine potential issues and complications prior to them being operated upon. Their vision, blood pressure, blood and urine are tested by the Sankara Eye staff

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Examinations Continue …..

Commentary

Diagonal: The men wait in line for all the women to be examined first

Up and Left: One of the doctors from the Sankara Eye Clinic in Coimbatore further examines the eyes of the villagers to determine the specific procedure that needs to be performed. Most of the people need a simple cataract surgery

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The Classrooms …..

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Well-Deserved Lunch …..

Commentary

Up and Right: After the examinations are completed, the team prepares and serves food for all of the villagers and the volunteers in the classrooms of the elementary school hosting the Eye Camp

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With the Kids …..

Commentary

All: Group pictures of the volunteers from Stanford University and the kids that lent a hand in running the Eye Camp efficiently

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Well Received …..

Commentary

Left and Right: The children are very excited to talk to the volunteers and ask them about the U.S.

Bottom Left and Right: Upon completing our activities at the Eye Camp the team walks around the village where everyone is excited to greet them and talk to them. People give them food on the street and invite them to their shops

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At the Hospital …..

Commentary

All: The villagers with identified need for eye surgery are transported to the hospital. On the following morning they are lining up for more detailed examinations before they are operated on. They have all spent the night at the hospital, receiving free meals and accommodation. The process organization is flawless and the patients are processed quickly and efficiently

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Detailed Examinations …..

Commentary

Up: The villagers are subjected to more detailed medical examinations to determine whether they can undergo the required eye surgeries

Left: Once the villagers are examined and no potential complications are detected they are taken to the operating room waiting room

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The Surgeries …..

Commentary

Diagonal: Angel was able to observe cataract surgeries in the operating room. This procedure which then lasted exactly 4 minutes and 39 seconds and costs a nominal amount by US standards has the power to change the patient’s life

Up and Left: Female doctors operating for hours on end on the newly arrived 300 villagers that day

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Recovery …..

Commentary

Top Left: At the hospital’s top floor untreated patients are waiting their turn. They are genuinely grateful for our help and for the hospital staff’s support

Bottom Left: This man has volunteered with Sankara Eye Society for 20 years and now comes back as a patients to receive a cataract surgery

Top Right: Patients are resting after the surgical procedures

Bottom Right: One of the leaders of the female groups is resting after a long night of reassuring the rest of the villagers

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Equipment Donation …..

Commentary

Left: Dr. R.V. Ramani, Founder of the Sankara Eye Care movement, accepts our gift of medical equipment in the amount of $25,000 and gives a lecture on its purposes and uses at the hospital

Diagonal: The medical equipment is officially accepted by the Sankara Eye Hospital staff and local Rotarians

Down: Group picture in front of the modern facilities of the Sankara Eye Hospital, Coimbatore, India

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Appendix

Give Sight Project Participation

Clubs and Organizations

Mr. Pradeep Rajendran

Stanford Rotaract President

psrajend@stanford.edu

Key Participants

Bellevue Rotary Club, WA Palo Alto Rotary Club, CA Palo Alto University Rotary, CA Sunnyvale Rotary, CA Coimbatore Rotary Club, India Pazardjik Rotary Club, Bulgaria

Stanford Rotaract Club, CA Silicon Valley Rotaract, CA

Lehman Brothers, Inc. Rotary International Foundation

Rotaract Clubs

Other

Rotary Clubs

Project Leaders

Key Participants Mr. Walter Hays, Past President of Palo Alto Rotary, CA Mr. Robert Rose, WSC Chair at Bellevue Rotary, WA

Mr. Donn Wadley, Rotaract District 5170 Chair, CA

Mr. Petar Hristov, Pazardjik Rotary President, Bulgaria

Mr. Don MacKenzie, Palo Alto University Rotary President, CA

Dr. R.V. Ramani, Coimbatore Rotary Past President, India

Dr. S.V. Kandasamy, Coimbatore Rotary Past President, India

Mr. J. Ravi, Coimbatore Rotary President, India

Mr. Angel Kelchev

Rotaract District 5170 Governor ’06-’08

www.kelchev.com

kelchev@gmail.com

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