Volume 1, Issue 3
September 2002
Page 2
by Donna Davis
In conjunction with AMOR ministries, a team of approximately 300 volunteers from the Pacific Northwest took part in housing and church construction near Tijuana, a struggling border town near San Diego. During the building projects a smaller team of 20 volunteers led by Mano con Mano’s Donna and John Davis held a vision clinic. The vision team saw 1010 people in one week, making it a huge success. The clinic team was privileged to have Dr. Brian Nelson, an ophthalmologist and Mano con Mano board member, participate this year. He was able to diagnose significant eye problems associated with diabetes in a number of people and refer them for care.
One case in particular was a woman who came in to have her eyes checked. She had her two-month old baby with her. As the team was admiring the baby it was noted that one of the baby’s eyes was significantly droopy. Dr. Brian was immediately summoned to examine the baby. The child had a congenital problem, which if not corrected surgically, would eventually lead to blindness in that eye. The mother was counseled about the importance of having the baby checked within a few months and to develop a plan for treatment. She agreed that she would follow up with the advice. This was a situation where a mother saw her baby born with a droopy eye, thought "that's just the way he is," and didn't know that something could be done about it. While this is an unusual example, we see many situations in Mexico of people with blindness in one eye for a variety of reasons that may be preventable. Our goal in these cases is to educate patients about the importance of taking care of their "good eye" so that they will not become totally blind. This example and other teaching opportunities are why vision clinics in a community can really make a difference. During this trip God gave us many opportunities to see His hand at work. It was very evident that He was in control and went before us to prepare the way. Thank you for your prayers as we were on the trip...they were so powerful!
by Carol Watson
Guatemala is the northernmost country in Central America. Bordered by Mexico on the north, Guatemala is a country populated by Mayan Indians who speak more than 20 different dialects and live by subsistence farming in villages scattered throughout the country. Extreme poverty and years of civil war have left the Guatemalan people open to hearing “Good News.” Since the 1970’s, Guatemala has become the Latin American country most responsive to the gospel. Over one-third of the country now claims to be “evangelical Christian.” We hope to bring you more news from Guatemala in future newsletters.
Carol Watson, an accountant from Seattle, Washington, learned to perform vision screening in Mazatlan with Mano con Mano in 1999. The following is an excerpt of her report to Agros Ministries, with whom she now travels and serves as a volunteer.
Agros Medical Team, Guatemala, November 25-December 1, 2001
The Agros Medical Team took approximately 150 pairs of reading glasses of varying strengths to the seven villages it visited. All but about ten pairs were dispensed, and those remaining were left with the health promoter at Trapichitos.
Background: From birth on, the human’s ability to focus at close range diminishes. By about the age of 45, everyone needs reading glasses for la vista corta, or close vision, a condition called presbyopia. We hoped to help older villagers to be able to read, sew, weave, repair tools and do other tasks requiring clear close vision. We were able to find a source for reading glasses at $0.60 per pair. Funds for purchase of these glasses were provided by Mano con Mano.
In addition to aging (presbyopia), the other most common vision problems are myopia (near-sightedness, inability to see at a distance), hyperopia (far-sightedness), and astigmatism. Myopia is corrected with negative lenses, which we didn’t have. Astigmatism requires complex and individualized lens-grinding to correct for irregularities in the cornea, thus we were unable to detect or help those with astigmatism. But hyperopia is corrected with positive lenses, so we hoped to detect and help those younger villagers with this problem.
Two other common eye problems in Central America are cataracts and pterigia, translucent scar-type tissue that develops on the surface of the sclera and sometimes grows until it covers the pupil. Most people with pterigia complain of itching and burning, but there is no particular treatment for the condition. Our only way to help those with cataracts has been with strong magnifying (+) lenses—which provide limited benefit. Cataracts may be caused or aggravated by sunlight. Pterigia are caused by sunlight and dust. Regular use of sunglasses would probably protect eyes from both.
Most of the village women do not read, so we used the Snellen chart with E’s. Just understanding the procedure was a challenge for many, especially the non-readers. Testing should go faster in the future now that most villagers “know the drill.” Likewise, distinguishing left from right was confusing for some, but they rarely erred with the up or down Es (if they could see them). We entered the results on each individual’s medical chart maintained at the Agros office in Cotzal.
A trip is now being planned for Fall 2002. If you would like to help provide more glasses for Guatemala, please contact Mano con Mano.
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