|
As we enter the season of thanks and giving, pause a few moments to consider how you can ensure that someone else can see and enjoy the holidays.
|
|
According to the United Nations World Health Organization:
-
285 million people are visually impaired worldwide: 39
million are blind and 264 million have low vision.
-
About 90% of the world’s visually impaired live in developing countries.
-
Globally, uncorrected refractive errors are the main cause of visual impairment; cataracts remain the leading cause of blindness in middle and low-income countries.
-
80% of all visual impairment can be avoided or cured.
-
About 65% of all people who are visually impaired are aged 50 and older.
-
An estimated 19 million children are visually impaired and of this number, 12 million are visually impaired due to refractive error and 1.4 million are irreversibly blind.
While these facts may tug at a few heart strings, ponder these numbers much closer to home:
-
10 million of those visually impaired are in the United States and that number is projected to
double within the next 30 years.
-
In 2010, Remote Area Medical (www.ramusa.org) provided 10,721 eye exams and 7,756 pairs of eyeglasses in the United States during camps in areas including Tennessee, Kentucky, Louisiana and California.
How can you, the eye care professional, help?
You can volunteer through any number of charitable and/or volunteer organizations.
LIONS CLUBS INTERNATIONAL: Arguably the most well-known volunteer service organization, Lions Clubs collect and recycle millions of eyeglasses every year, making it one of their most popular activities. Lions Clubs International operates 18 eyeglass recycling centers in the US and around the world. It costs Lions less than $0.08 to provide a pair of recycled eyeglasses. Volunteer Lions prepare eyeglasses for distribution, ship large quantities of prepared eyeglasses to humanitarian teams and supply Lions permanent clinics with an inventory of prepared eyeglasses. While “Gift of Sight” programs are most visible during the holidays, the need continues the year round and your local Lions accept donated eyeglasses (and sometimes hearing aids) all year. To find the nearest Lions Club, visit their website at
www.lionsclubs.org.
EYE-GIVE FOUNDATION: Founded in 2010 by Optovue Incorporated, the Eye-Give Foundation arranges or provides donations of advanced technology to various sight-saving charities and organizations around the world. Located in Fremont, California, Optovue manufactures advanced imaging tools for use in the eye care industry. To learn more about Optovue and the Eye-Give Foundation, visit their website at
www.eye-give.org.
VISION SPRING: Founded in 2007 as the Scojo Foundation, VisionSpring uses a micro-lending business model, allowing poor people in developing or underserved countries to sell eyewear to others in their areas. With more than 610,000 pair of eyeglasses sold, VisionSpring estimates the positive economic impact to be millions of dollars through job creation and increased productivity. To understand the scope of this entrepreneurial organization, visit their website at
www.visionspring.org.
ORBIS INTERNATIONAL: Among its many international programs, Orbis International operates the Flying Eye Hospital, staffed from a pool of more than 500 medical professionals and utilizing volunteer pilots from FedEx and United Airlines. Its first mission took off in 1982 and has since visited 85 countries and performed millions of vision saving operations. Orbis International has field offices in several countries and provides education and care to needy patients worldwide. Spend some time watching video and slide presentations at their website
www.orbis.org.
VOLUNTEER OPTOMETRIC SERVICES TO HUMANITY (VOSH/INTERNATIONAL): Established in 1971, VOSH is a non-governmental (NGO), non-sectarian, apolitical organization dedicated to the provision of eye and vision services for those who are below poverty level and without access to local eyecare. VOSH has 32 regional chapters and 29 student chapters in the US, Canada, Honduras, India, Africa, South America and the Netherlands. Members include optometrists, ophthalmologists, opticians and lay volunteers dedicated to its mission to eliminate avoidable blindness. The chapters average between 80 and 90 missions annually, serving more than 100,000 people in need. VOSH also operates disaster clinics in areas devastated by natural and man-made disasters. Learn more about VOSH at their website
www.vosh.org.
FRAMES FOR THE WORLD /A National Vision , Inc. Foundation: One of the newest players in the field, Frames for the World was established in September 2010 by National Vision. According to Reade Fahs, CEO of National Vision, “In our business life we devote ourselves to bringing low cost eyewear to cost conscious consumers throughout the United States. In our philanthropic life, we try to use our understanding of manufacturing and the optical supply chain as well as our many connections throughout the worldwide optical industry to help make affordable new eyeglasses available to poorer people in the developing world.”
Frames for the World acts as an intermediary in the process of providing low cost eyewear, by managing frame donations to ensure the frames were going to those with the greatest need. The organization works with non-profit eye hospitals in Latin America. Learn more about this new player at their website
www.framesfortheworld.com.
PREVENT BLINDNESS AMERICA: PBA was founded in 1908 and is the nation’s leading volunteer eye health and safety organization dedicated to preventing blindness and saving sight. Prevent Blindness America trains and certifies adult and children’s vision screeners and screening instructors through the only national program of its kind, providing 20,000 vision screening personnel with the skills necessary to help people in their communities. They support groundbreaking vision research and advocate at the local, state and national levels in an effort to improve our nation’s health policies. Find more information on how you can participate at
www.preventblindness.org.
These are just a small representation of the hundreds of ways that you can give back to your community, your country and the world at large. Whether you choose to participate from the comfort of your home through financial contributions or by actively joining an organization, the fact is that you will never regret your participation.
The average American will spend in excess of $350.00 on Black Friday. If Lions Clubs International can supply a pair of life altering eyeglasses for $0.08, surely you can spare a bit of pocket change or a few hours of your time to help give the gift of sight.
“Everybody can be great…because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.”
--Martin Luther King, Jr.
|
