Eye Care

We have now chosen 2 of our to-be-trained “Village Eye Specialists.” In each village, we hold a large meeting with all political and opinion leaders, and a bunch of VHT members. Abdul, the representatives from Sight Savers International, sensitizes the village leaders about eye problems, and about issues of rehabilitation and learned mobility for those with eye problems. Then the group chooses a villager to be trained as Eye Specialist.

In Bulumwaki the village leaders chose Faith, our VHT chair, but then Faith moved out of the village. Last week, the village leaders elected another VHT member, who is young and fairly educated and who had sat through Abdul’s entire previous sensitization on eye problems.

In Bugabula, the village leaders chose Mugaya, the VHT chair and the Village LC-1 chair. Bugabula appears to have a much higher rate than normal of eye problems, and so Abudl is going, today, to speak with the SSI surgeon in Iganga, to ask him if he might be able to do eye surgeries at the nearby Kinyunga Health Center, rather than us transporting a ton of Bugabula villagers all the way to Iganga Hospital in town. (Bugabula is 75 minutes from town by motorcycle, and about 2.5 hours by public transport.)

We shall be going to Walukuba today, to choose the eye specialist… I’m going to hazard a guess that the village will choose Samwiri Kambuzi, the VHT chair. I’ll update this blog to let you know if I’m right – and I’ll take a picture of the sensitization also, to post!

We are yet to get to Butongole, and Nabitovu shall be next Tuesday.