Cataract sufferers are regaining the gift of sight thanks to free eye clinics at the St John Centre in Grahamstown. Grocott's Mail reporter Matthew Smith Miller was there last Thursday to see for himself.
Dr. Danie Louw and his team from Provincial Hospital, Port Elizabeth make the journey to the St John Centre in Grahamstown between two and four times a year to examine cataract patients.
On the day Grocott's Mail visited the centre, a large crowd of mostly elderly people, waited outside in plastic chairs – the demand for cataract treatment is great, and some people arrived at 5am to ensure they got a place in the queue. Each person held a paper slip with a number on it, and in groups of ten or so, they were called in to begin the examination process.
Cataract sufferers are regaining the gift of sight thanks to free eye clinics at the St John Centre in Grahamstown. Grocott's Mail reporter Matthew Smith Miller was there last Thursday to see for himself.
Dr. Danie Louw and his team from Provincial Hospital, Port Elizabeth make the journey to the St John Centre in Grahamstown between two and four times a year to examine cataract patients.
On the day Grocott's Mail visited the centre, a large crowd of mostly elderly people, waited outside in plastic chairs – the demand for cataract treatment is great, and some people arrived at 5am to ensure they got a place in the queue. Each person held a paper slip with a number on it, and in groups of ten or so, they were called in to begin the examination process.
The doctors determine from these examinations which patients are most in need of eye operations and add their names to a waiting list, with the most severe cases being given priority treatment. There is such a high demand that Dr. Louw's surgery spots are booked up to the end of the year, and the waiting list has a whopping 250 names on it.
Dr. Louw and his team return to Grahamstown's Settler's Hospital for two days in the same week to perform around thirty surgeries on previously listed patients, which are very quick and usually allow the patient to leave the very next day.
All the patients were referred by local optometry clinics, primarily Dr. Davies and his optometrists on Bathurst Street, who see cataract sufferers on Tuesdays throughout the year. Their conditions range "from very blind to not too bad," according to St John Centre Manager Mario Viljoen. Some have already had one eye operated on, but most still need attention on both.
One such patient is George Goliath, 76, who worked in hospital security as a younger man, and developed eye problems after his retirement in 1987. He previously had an operation on his left eye and now he can see quite well with it, but now the vision in his right eye is failing, so he hopes that Dr. Louw will be able to help him again. “It's a great opportunity for us, for pensioners who haven't got money,” said Goliath. “It's a great help to us.”
35-year-old Nondumiso Mbumba of Bathurst was one of the youngest to come to St. John on Thursday. She was born sightless in her right eye, and with limited vision in her left. She has never had an operation before. She was referred by a clinic in Port Alfred, the closest to her home town.
Mbumba said she feels "very lucky to have the opportunity to see one of the people who are here today, because some of [the people with eye problems]don't even know that the centre is here." Mbumba worked as part of a knitting and pottery project some time ago, and though an operation will make her life better, she said that she still isn't sure where she will find work.
The whole process is free for the patients. Funding for the surgeries comes primarily from the Department of Health, as well as from charity organizations like Texas-based Mercy Ships. Additionally, the Rotary club donates significant funds to pay for spectacles.
As the doctors went about their business, the centre was a flurry of activity. Centre Manager, Viljoen and volunteers were on hand to assist the doctors and provide for the needs of the patients, even making sandwiches for those who had been waiting for a long time.
“Sometimes it's hard work, but it's usually quite rewarding," said Viljoen. "I mean, if you've ever seen a guy who's had an operation – the next morning they can actually see after twenty or whatever years of being blind. It's an amazing experience."
