Cataract patients rediscover the brighter side of life in Buru Islands
Buru, Ophthalmologist examins a patient before determining his needs for operation or other treatment.CC BY-NC-ND/ICRC/ Otto Ferdinand
Buru, Freddy Nggadas, ICRC prgram manager for the Cataract Operation Program, taking notes patients’ information before the examination.CC BY-NC-ND/ICRC/ Otto Ferdinand
Buru, another patient gets measuring before he can obtain free reading glasses.CC BY-NC-ND/ICRC/ Otto Ferdinand
Patient waiting for the Ophthalmologist to examine his left eye, one day after his cataract surgery.CC BY-NC-ND/ICRC/ Otto Ferdinand
Buru, Ophthalmologist examins a patient before determining his needs for operation or other treatment.CC BY-NC-ND/ICRC/ Otto Ferdinand
Buru, Ophthalmologist performs a cataract surgery to a patient in Buru Island, Maluku, Indonesia, during a free cataract operation joint program with the ICRC and Indonesian Red Cross (PMI).CC BY-NC-ND/ICRC/ Otto Ferdinand
An ophthalmologist performs cataract surgery on a patient in Buru Island, Maluku, Indonesia, during a free cataract operation program managed by the ICRC and Indonesian Red Cross (PMI).CC BY-NC-ND/ICRC/ Otto Ferdinand
Patient who just finished her cataract surgery, prepares to be taken to the recovery room.CC BY-NC-ND/ICRC/ Otto Ferdinand
Buru, another patient gets measuring before he can obtain free reading glasses.CC BY-NC-ND/ICRC/ Otto Ferdinand
Dr. Elna S. Anakotta, Spm, the Ophthalmologist, takes a group photo with all of the patients after the examination and the surgeries.CC BY-NC-ND/ICRC/ Otto Ferdinand
Every year, together with the Indonesia Red Cross (PMI), we assist communities in remote provinces like Papua, by restoring eyesight for patients suffering from cataracts and other eye problems.
This year, for the first time since the program started in 2006, teams went to the Buru Islands in Maluku Province where access to healthcare remains limited, and untreated cataracts are a major cause of blindness. They came back with these photos and stories.
