Vision Aid Oversees
The Problem - A shortage of spectacles in developing countries
In developing countries many people with poor eyesight do not have access to opticians, eye tests and spectacles. It is estimated that more than 300 million people suffer hardship simply because they do not have a pair of spectacles that would enable them to lead a normal life. The root cause of this situation is poverty and a lack of health services including optician support. For people with poor vision in the developing countries, education and employment can be inaccesible. Life can be difficult and even dangerous.
Rotary Solution - Support 'Vision Aid Overseas'
Roary supports the work of Vision Aid Overseas, a charity dedicated to helping people with poor eyesight in developing countries. Established in 1985 the charity asks people in the UK to donate unwanted spectacles which are then graded and repaired before being shipped overseas where they are dispensed to the needy. Volunteer optometrists and dispensing opticians travel overseas to perform eye tests to ensure that the spectacles are correctly dispensed. The procedures are outlined below.
# People give unwanted spectacles to local collection centres (opticians, chemists etc).
# DX Network Services collects the spectacles and delivers them to VAO.
# VAO sorts the spectacles, scrapping any that are unsuitable.
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Prisoners clean, grade and pack the spectacles.
# Spectacles are shipped overseas.
# Spectacles are finally dispensed to the needy at special clinics after eye tests are carried out.
Some of the countries supported by Vision Aid Overseas are Burkina Faso , Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Malawi Sierra Leone, Uganda and Zambia.
Rotary Clubs in the UK assist in this work by collecting unwanted spectacles. The spectacles are delivered to opticians practices from where they are collected by DX Network Services, a specialist optical delivery provider.
Contributions from Rotary Club of Upper Eden
The Rotary Club of Upper Eden utilises The Green Tree Pharmacy, Kirkby Stephen, as a collection centre for unwanted spectacles. Periodically we collect the spectacles and deliver them to an optometrist in Penrith where they are checked before collection by DX for delivery to Vision Aid Overseas. If you are in the Kirkby Stephen area and you have unwanted spectacles please consider handing them in to the Pharmacy.
2010 July - 85 Pairs of spectacles collected and donated to Vision Aid Overseas.
2010 - February - 37 pairs of spectacles collected and donated to Vision Aid Overseas.
2009 - 158 pairs of spectacles collected and donated to Vision Aid Overseas.
2003 - 2008 -
234 pairs of spectacles collected and donated to Vision Aid Overseas.