Kenya: Eyesight Clinic Offers Rays of Hope

Mark Agutu

10 November 2011

From a humble beginning 17 years ago, Kwale District Eye Centre has evolved into a clinic that casts rays of hope into the lives of many plagued by blindness.

The centre in Waa has been at the forefront of helping people across the Coast who cannot afford the care offered at private hospitals.

Run as a self-help group and a legal trust, the centre makes minimal charges for its services that range from consultation, diagnostics, corrective surgery and counselling.

Operations are carried out by the centre's own team of surgeons backed by visiting experts from the UK and Germany.
The centre serves some 50 outpatients daily and to date mote than 24,700 operations have been performed and 56,000 people registered.
A further 10,000 people are screened each year in the field.
"Most of the operations are cataract extractions with lens implants," said centre director Helen Roberts.
Behind the success of the centre is its strong community programme which creates awareness of eye disease.
"This is the our main strength, working closely with an in the community conducting outreach clinics for 15 years," said Dr Roberts, an ophthalmologist who leads a team of 45 staff members.
Seventeen of them work in the community programme, 12 in the medical department and 16 in administration and with support staff.

"Funding from Sight Savers enabled us to build up both the skills and infrastructure to offer a very high level of quality comprehensive eye care. This year, their donation funded cataract surgery, medical staff salaries and vehicles," said Dr Roberts.
The centre has also been helped by the Standard Chartered Nairobi International Marathon, which raised funds for eye surgery for children.
It has also come up with its own fund raising schemes, including the Liaison Eye Go Fishing Competition, sponsored by the Liaison Group.
The annual event, now in its sixth year, is a competition in boating and fishing and other fun water sports. Last year it raised Sh366,520.