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| Global Eye Care, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit
organization, is bringing vision services to developing countries. But your help is
crucial. Global Eye Care is equipping and renovating teaching hospitals and clinics with
modern equipment to educate ophthalmologists. Local ophthalmologists are being educated
with diagnostic and state-of-the-art techniques to reduce the years of backlog of
cataracts and glaucoma. Also, eye care outreach clinics are being built and manned by
ophthalmologists. Volunteer ophthalmologists, ophthalmic nurses, and technicians from the
USA and all over the world are being recruited to teach and perform surgery for at least
one to four weeks. But without your participation and commitment, we won't be able to
continue making this happen. Millions of people around the
world desperately need vision care. In America, vision centers with state-of-the-art
technology are easily accessible. However, in developing countries, most facilities  don't
have the proper diagnostic equipment, the necessary medications, or enough practitioners
to adequately heal those in dire need. With this in mind, Dr. Ifeoma Ezekwo, founder and
director of Global Eye Care, decided to spearhead a change in the way people of developing
countries are treated as eye care patients. Dr. Ezekwo has firsthand knowledge of the
inadequate facilities in developing countries. With her expertise and desire, she felt
impassioned to pioneer a change. "The inadequate number of ophthalmologists,
facilities, and equipment in developing countries stunned me. I knew I had to make a
commitment to myself and others to better their vision,"
explains Dr. Ezekwo. |
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| And Now That Dream is Becoming a Reality |
| One of Global Eye Care's primary goals is to provide
more comprehensive training for local ophthalmologists, ophthalmic nurses, and technicians
in developing countries. As a result of such training, and outreach programs, the local
people will become more educated about eye care. For example, they will learn the
importance of wearing sunglasses, and people will stop suffering from unnecessary
blindness due to glaucoma and cataracts. Since eyeglases are a luxury, Global Eye Care
also has a program to distribute donated glasses to eye care centers. It's critical to have access to the medications that can heal diseases such
as glaucoma, trachoma, and river blindness. But such drugs are extremely scarce in
developing countries -- even saline solution and artificial tears are in great demand.
Global Eye Care provides these medications to better serve the people of developing
countries. Nobody deserves neglect.
Global Eye Care is committed to providing eye care services
throughout countries in need. With your help and dedication, Global Eye Care will be able
to continue to:
- Distribute equipment, supplies,
instruments, meditations, journals, books, and computers donated by organizations,
foundations, companies, and individual ophthalmologists.
- Gather monetary donations to help
daily operations.
- Prepare and distribute educational
materials about eye care to the locals.
- Form local boards of ophthalmologists
and other eye care professionals to run the centers.
The goal is to have eye centers functioning on their own within two
to five years and to establish other centers throughout the world. Ophthalmic nurses and
technicians will be trained to assist the ophthalmologists, maintain equipment, and keep
the clinics thriving. Remember, none of this can happen without you. |
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 Did You Know?In the United States there is one ophthalmologst for every ten thousand
people. In Developing areas such as the African continent, the ratio is one
ophthalmologst for every one million people. Using Africa as an example, here is why
Global Eye Care's work is so vital: |
| 1) |
The ratio of ophthalmologists to
population is 1:1 million. |
| 2) |
One of every 100 people in Africa is
affected by blindness. |
| 3) |
River blindness affects
approximately 500,000 Africans. |
| 4) |
More than half of the African people
have engaged in warfare. |
| 5) |
Millions are bilaterally blind from
cataracts. |
| 6) |
Vitamin A deficiency and general
malnutrition are the prime causes of blindness in children. |
| 7) |
Land mines contribute to blindness
in Africans. |
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| Change the World
Today |
| Please take the time to be a part of Global Eye Care.
Donate your time to become a volunteer. Contribute to Global Eye Care's fund-raising
efforts. Become an investor in the organization. Give equipment and medication. Do what
you can to make a difference. Your help does matter to the many people who need better
vision. Without charity, our lives are empty. The satisfying
aspect of giving time or money to an organization in need reminds us of how we can change
lives. Be a part of Global Eye Care, and heal others of their vision problems.
For more information, please call Dr. Ezekwo of Global Eye Care
today at (718) 733-5730, or e-mail her at iezekwo@globaleyecare.org.
If you're donating equipment or medication, Global
Eye Care can arrange a pickup...or please mail the donations to
3013
Grand Concourse, New York, NY 10468
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