Erradication of Preventable Blindness

Eradication of Preventable Blindness – Eye Care on Wheels

Preventable blindness is a signature programme of Turnstone Global. Under this programme we do eye screening of Children, Adults and Elders in nook and corner of urban slums and rural areas.
A Mobile Van equipped with sophisticated ophthalmic instruments along with an expert medical team lead by an ophthalmologist organise multiple eye screening and check-up camps in urban, semi urban and rural areas.

Eye screening camps in schools covered under Samagra Siksha Mission:

Along with other activities, Samagra Siksha Mission assigned the task of conducting eye screening camps in different schools covered under their programme in West Bengal . Our experience in conducting the programme “Eye Care on Wheels” since decades played a major role to incorporate Turnstone Global with the assigned project of Samagra Siksha Mission, Govt. of West Bengal

In one such camp, we identified a 6 year old child named Pratap Das who was suffering from Bilateral congenital Cataract. The case was referred to both District and State Samagra Siksha Mission authorities. Later, Samagra Siksha Mission issued a letter to us requesting to conduct corrective surgery for Pratap. Based on their letter, we took Pratap at Sankara Netralaya, where he was further examined and cataract surgery was performed for both of his eyes in free of cost. He got back his eye sight at the age of 6 years. The smile and sense of satisfaction on the face of Pratap’s parents were remarkable .

Sankar Netralaya is our long standing partner in organising such eye screening camps. After eye screening camps in urban and rural areas, the eligible cases are brought to Sankar Netralaya for surgery.
Recently partnering with Vision Spring we added a new division in this sector that is Eye screening for the children. As Turnstone Global always targeted to provide need base services hence to find out the eye problems among the school students (age group 3 yrs -15 years) who are constantly doing on line classes during this Covid pandemic we screened 9448 children between 3yrs to 15 years of age and unexpectedly found most of the children are suffering with dry eye syndrome and increased eye pressure. 1042 children were being diagnosed with power change and they had been given spectacles in fre of cost.
Annually, on an average –
46,000 patients are screened
1,500 cataract operations performed
8,000 spectacles distributed
11,000 patients referred to speciality hospital for other treatment

Story of Tairuneesha Bibi

The situation before:
Tairunisha Bibi, aged about 67 lives in a remote village of Panchra in West Midnapore district. Inadequate health care facility in such a remote area prevented her from receiving medical service of any kind. Added to this, it was her poor economic condition, which prevented her to afford the cost of travel even to the district hospital situated more than 150 k.m. away from her village. She had almost lost her ability to see, even from a close distance.

Pre operative Cannulation of Tairunisha Bibi

Intervention:
Tairuneesha Bibi got the news of a free cataract screening camp being conducted in her village by our Organisation and visited the camp expecting to get some remedy. Doctors at the camp identified her as a cataract patient. Later she was brought to the Medical College Hospital in Kolkata where her cataract was operated.

The situation today:
Tairuneesha has got back her vision after operating both of her eyes for cataract and now she is leading a barrier free life with good vision in her eyes