Jain Spirit 2003 10 No 16

Author(s): Jain Spirit UK
Publisher: UK Young Jains

Page 11

GLOBAL NEWS
VISION OF HOPE
Punit Haria reports on the 24th Free Eye & E.N.T. Camp in Thika, Kenya, from 5-13 April 2003. Several years ago I heard of the eye camp in Thika, but to find out more I had to go and see for myself by volunteering my optometric services. The Shree Jain Youth League, Thika, has now been running this free annual eye camp for the past 24 years. When the camp started, the Visa Oshwal Community of Thika numbered well over a thousand people but even now, with fewer than 200 living permanently in Thika, the community still manages to support this work. Every year the camp is sponsored by various members of the Oshwal community, but with no support from any government agency or NGO. It is really surprising how little awareness there is - both outside and within Kenya - about this wonderful Jain contribution to the people of East Africa.
Until nine years ago the camp was for eye examinations only, then E.N.T. services were also introduced, thus broadening the scope for helping people in need of medical services. A team of doctors, surgeons and optometrists from all over India, headed by Dr. S.K. Savla, come to provide their skills free of charge.
The venue for the camp was Thika Girls' School, which was transformed into a hospital for a week. A few classrooms had been emptied of their desks and curtains had been mounted to mark the clinical screening areas. Another couple of classrooms were fumigated and transformed into surgical theatres. The windows were blacked out, extra illumination added and mobile fans installed to provide the best possible surgical conditions. Two huge tents were erected in the playgrounds to serve as comfortable, shaded, seated waiting areas for the
patients. Dormitories were converted into hospital wards for the patients.
Five days before the camp commenced in Thika, screening parties - doctors, optometrists and nonspecialist volunteers - were sent out to rural areas around central Kenya, to examine patients, give out medicines, spectacles, advice and seek out any operative cases. If the patients required any type of surgery, they would be given their travel fare and instructed to come to the camp in Thika on a particular day.
One day we went to Raraka, which is an industrial suburb of Nairobi. Screening was carried out in a local primary school. When we arrived at 9.00 a.m., there was already a small group of people waiting. The locals had heard about the screening camp from advertisements in the paper, radio and television. The small queue soon grew much longer, the first few patients having showed off their new spectacles to friends and family in the surrounding neighbourhood. With only the very basic equipment at hand, like hand-made posters on the walls to act as visual assessment charts, large torches to assess for any disease and some medicine, we saw some 500 patients all together. ranging from babies as young as 6 months to patients aged 80 and over.
Many of the symptoms in evidence were of the kind that could be eliminated by better hygiene, sanitation, diet and protection. Some spectacles were given out and many children were given vitamin supplements to promote healthier bodies. Many of the patients smiled and were deeply appreciative when given the appropriate pair of spectacles, which enabled them to read their Bible (printed in the most minute writing), books and newspapers.
With each passing day in the camp,
the queue of patients grew longer. People would start queuing from 4 a.m. and some even camped all night, to ensure they would be seen the next day. In total, over the ten days of the camp some 17000 patients were screened, of which 350 had cataract operations and 150 had E.N.T. surgery. 5000 pairs of spectacles were also dispensed. The camp was run very professionally and smoothly, with the help and hard work of numerous volunteers, young and old. As a volunteer, it is very moving to see the tremendous courage and dignity of the various patients -
patient is really the right word for these people from whom we can learn so much!
The warm atmosphere in the camp and the humble hospitality of our Thika hosts will never be forgotten. I thoroughly recommend this voluntary project to everyone; in fact, we have already begun searching for potential volunteers for next year's camp. For further information on the Thika Eye & E.N.T. Camp, please email: Kajal Shah: kajshah@aol.com Kalpa Shah: kalpa_malde@hotmail.com Punit Haria: punitabla@hotmail.com
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September - November 2003 . Jain Spirit
9
Jain Education Interational 2010_03