Nuu regains its sight

Today, Thursday October 8th is World Health Organisation's World Sight Day. The following article tells the wonderful story of how generous optician Bernard Jennings and his friends, assisted Sr. Goretti Ward in Nuu, Kenya to improve the sight of hundreds of people.

For the past three years Carlow optician Bernard Jennings has traveled to the Kenyan village of Nuu where he conducts an annual series of Eye Testing in different clinics.
This village has been home for Sisters of Mercy from Ireland and Kenya for many years.

This year Bernard was accompanied in the field by fellow optician Jim Tunny and once again by writer Brendan Harding.

Preparation for this Eye Testing was long and tedious due to the absence of electricity or phones; a generator was needed to charge the batteries to power the medical equipment.
But the good news of the forthcoming clinics was spread through the Churches, the children in the schools, the chiefs and the sub chiefs, the local clinics and posters and finally the sisters’ friends.

Everyone prayed that the seasonal rains would not begin at that time; otherwise the opticians would not reach Nuu, as flooded rivers would be too dangerous to pass.

The local people, who are in great need of eye care, would have to walk twenty to thirty kilometers to the clinics due to the absence of any other form of transport in the area. They usually travel part of the way, then rest in a friend’s hut and have some food, making sure that they will not miss the eye testing. This is even more difficult for a blind or an old person.

A darkened room was needed to do the testing, so, to improvise, material was taped to the windows. Jugs of water and glucose were a necessary part of the whole preparation to ensure that energy levels were maintained. For the people who had traveled long distances on foot, jerry cans of water were made available. The clinic was a hive of activity – different people offered their services so that the day ran smoothly. A young girl acted as receptionist and took the patients medical history. Others assisted the people to the test area as their mobility was limited because of their sight problems.

On Holy Thursday April the 9th 2009, the eye testing began. The sun was high in the sky when may people reached the clinic and rested under the shade of the bougainvillea. As the morning went on more people came, and all the helpers made sure that everyone was given the attention they required. By the end of the first day Bernard Jennings and Team were happy with their labours.

The following day was Good Friday. Again the queues of people greeted Bernard, Jim and Brendan. Bernard and Jim did not speak Kiswahili or the local language Kikamba but they were ably assisted by local interpreters. Initially, the testing posed a problem as many of the people could not read ABC so Brendan a graphic designer, designed a chart of recognizable images; a hen, a cross, an elephant, a butterfly, a milking stool, a dog, all in decreasing sizes.

A working routine had been established from the previous day and the crowds were quickly swallowed up in the heat of the testing room. During these days four hundred and fifty people were tested, the most common ailment being the presence of cataracts, which could be treated. A simple prescription for spectacles would ensure the sight of many more. For some of the younger ones – who curiously seemed happy at the thought of wearing spectacles – a handshake and congratulations for having such perfect sight was good enough – they left with a smile. Eighty people needed surgery for Trachoma, cataract or eye removal. But for others there would be no hope; a thorn in the eye while searching for a lost goat, a lash from a cow’s tail during milking, a stone thrown in play or anger. All of those could possibly have been treated had they been seen in time. But in Nuu, where there are no hospital facilities, this was not possible.

A daunting task lay ahead – eighty people had to be transported to Kikuyu Eye Hospital in Nairobi, for treatments and operations. This meant a tiring journey by bus beginning at 1 am, in order to travel 300 kilometers from Nuu – two buses ensuring that the patient’s adventure into new surrounding would go smoothly and without discomfort.

On arrival at the hospital at 8.30 am they were greeted by the surgeons and nurses who were ready to admit the eighty people. Two surgeons would operate the following morning. The next day was day of rejoicing and thanking God as forty people who regained their sight, among them a thirteen year old boy, all were jumping for joy and clasping the hands of others saying “I can see you, asante sana (thank you) “

Later the group traveled back to Nuu. Those whose sight had been restored enjoyed the beauty of nature, hidden for them for so long.

To date the team has worked in five villages and over a thousand people have been tested, one hundred and twenty five have regained sight, while others are waiting for sight restoring operations in Kikuyu Eye Hospital. The doctors and nurses of Kikuyu Eye Hospital have teamed up with the Sisters and many valuable links have been created, with the result that the area is now visited by a mobile eye-unit on an increasing level of frequency. Another upshot from this relationship is that the clinic in Nuu has been assessed and has been prepared as a sterile environment where surgery can be conducted, so that people who are frail and unsure of their environment do not have to travel the long difficult journey to Nairobi.

There are many people to be thanked for enabling this small miracle to take place. With the aid of the Waterford based charity ‘Fight for Sight’, a valuable new piece of surgical equipment has been purchased and donated to the Kikuyu Eye Unit which will continue helping many long after the eye-tests have been completed. The business of transporting the optician’s valuable and sensitive equipment was the gift of Braun, Ireland. Another Carlow firm Netwatch Security, through a gracious financial donation, have helped pay for the treatments received by so many.

It is with immense gratitude to Kikuyu Eye Hospital that so many lives have been changed, allowing people to once again become valued members of the community, and contribute to the viability of their own futures and the community as a whole.

This is all taking place because of the generosity and vision of Bernard Jennings, Betty O’Gorman, Miriam Kilgariff, Jim Tunny, and Brendan Harding.

Mile Buiochas

Sr. Goretti Ward