Programs/Projects Undertaken between 1st January 2023 to 31st March 2023:
A. Improving the lives and productivity of Tea tribes (tea garden workers and their families/dependents) through safe eye-screenings and provision of eyeglasses
Background and Scope:
Between 1st January 2023 till 31st March 2023, a total of 3,055 coffee growers and tea tribes and their households in the tea and coffee estates of Assam and Kerala, India, were screened for vision and 1,655 eyeglasses were provided to those who required them and those with complex eye diseases were referred to the Government/other hospitals in the area for further diagnosis and treatment. This program was conducted in collaboration with the following:
1. Tea garden workers and their families/dependents located in following locations of Assam, India:
* Hathikuli Tea Estate, Amalgamated Plantations Private Limited Foundation (APPLF) - Kaziranga District.
* Bagasa Plantations - Kaliabor, Nagaon, Dubba, Sibsaghar, Halmiramook, and Golaghat Districts.
2. Coffee workers and their families/dependents located in following locations of Kerala, India:
*Fair Trade Alliance - Wayanad and Kozhikode Districts.
Eye-Screening Statistics*: 1st January 2023 to 31st March 2023
1.Distribution of people screened: Screened a total of 3,055 tea pickers, coffee growers, and their household members in the tea and coffee estates of Assam and Kerala, India, among them 56% (n = 1,711) were males and 47% (n = 1,438) were females.
2.Refractive error (poor vision) rate among the screened population: 62% (n = 1,884) of all the screened individuals identified with refractive error/presbyopia.
3.Referrals made for the screened population: 20% (n = 626) have been referred to the hospitals out of whom 81% (n = 504) identified with suspected cataract and 19% (n = 122) identified with other complex eye diseases had been referred for further diagnosis to tertiary care hospitals and/or community health centres.
4.Eyeglasses distribution: 15% (n = 1,655) of all population identified with refractive error/presbyopia received eyeglasses; Reading Glasses: 44% (n = 735), Prescription (Rx) Glasses: 55% (n = 909), and Pre-Cuts: 1% (n = 11).
5.First Time Wearers (FTWs): 103% (n = 1,704) of the people who received their eyeglasses got their first ever pair of eyeglasses through the eye screening camps.
6. Post-coverage rate in the population was 15%.
Testimonials: Fair Trade Alliance - Kerala
Name: Raghavan
Gender: Male
Age: 52 Years
Occupation: Coffee Picker
Location: Cherupuzha, Kerala
Raghavan visited the outreach program and got himself registered for eye-screening. He witnessed difference in his vision which made him comfortable in completing his daily tasks. His vision became better which improved his productivity being more efficient and effective. He could deliver the required number output. He thanked the entire VisionSpring Foundation team who assisted him during the eye-screening process.
Testimonials: APPL Foundation
Name: Gayatri Gogoi
Gender: Female
Age: 41 Years
Occupation: Tea Picker
Location: Hathikuli Tea Estate, Golaghat, Assam
Gayatri visited the outreach program and got herself registered for eye-screening. She was facing difficulties while carrying out her day-to-day activities and was unable to concentrate while picking tea leaves. She got herself examined and got a pair of eyeglasses, which helped her in delivering the required numbers of tea leaves and earn a better living. She extended her gratitude to the entire team of VisionSpring Foundation.
Testimonials: Bagasa Plantations
Name: Deepali
Gender: Female
Age: 45 Years
Occupation: Tea Picker
Location: Bagasa Tea Estate, Koliabor, Nogaon, Assam
Deepali was experiencing watery and blurry eyes and highlighted these issues to VSF team. She was unable to sort the right kind of tea leaves and ended up handing over less kilos of tea leaves, which affected her productivity and ultimately resulted in her low income. She got herself examined and got eyeglasses from VisionSpring Foundation team, which helped her to do her work effectively
B. Improving the lives and productivity of artisans, weavers and their households in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Assam, and Punjab through safe eye-screenings and provision of eyeglasses
Background and Scope:
VisionSpring Foundation (VSF) organised eye-screening outreach program for the weavers and artisans, their families, and associated communities in the artisans and weavers’ clusters in various locations in India namely, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Assam, Gujarat, and Rajasthan. After making the locations COVID ready by doing COVID awareness creation, training on hand hygiene, mask wearing, and social distancing protocols in the premises, the VisionSpring Foundation team performed eye-screenings with the COVID safe protocols.
During the period of 1st January 2023 till 31st March 2023, 7,029 weavers, artisans, spinners and their households in the weaver and artisan clusters of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Assam, were screened for vision and 4,154 eyeglasses were provided to those who required them and those with complex eye diseases were referred to the Government/other hospitals in the area for further diagnosis and treatment. This program was in collaboration with:
1. Jaipur Rugs Foundation: Mansarovar Industrial Area, District Jaipur, Rajasthan, India
2. Society for North-East Handmade Paper Development (SNEHPAD): Jorhat, Golaghat and Majuli, Assam, India
3. Kutch Craft Collective: Bhuj, Kachchh District, Gujarat, India
4. Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI FLO), Princess Diya Kumari Foundation Society: Shantipath, Tilak Nagar, Jaipur District, Rajasthan, India
Eye-Screening Statistics: 1st January 2023 to 31st March 2023
1.Distribution of people screened: Screened a total of 7,029 weavers, artisans, spinners and their household members in the weaver and artisan clusters. Among the people screened, 41% (n = 2,883) were males and 59% (n = 4,146) were females.
2.Refractive error (poor vision) rate among the screened population: 64% (n = 4,514) of all the screened individuals identified with refractive error/presbyopia.
3.Referrals made for the screened population: 19% (n = 1,373) have been referred to the hospitals out of whom 67% (n = 916) identified with suspected cataract and 33% (n = 457) identified with other complex eye diseases had been referred for further diagnosis to tertiary care hospitals and/or community health centres.
4.Eyeglasses distribution: 92% (n = 4,154) of all population identified with refractive error/presbyopia received eyeglasses; Reading Glasses: 50% (n = 2,063) and Prescription (Rx) Glasses: 48% (n = 2,009), and Pre-Cuts: 2% (n = 82)
5.First Time Wearers (FTWs): 96% (n = 4,004) of the people who received their eyeglasses got their first ever pair of eyeglasses through the eye screening camps.
6.Post-coverage rate in the population was 92%.
VisionSpring Foundation (VSF) Activity Report: 1st January 2023 to 31st March 2023
Mission
To provide eye-screening, primary eye-care services, and eye-health advice to the people at the bottom of the socio-economic pyramid.
Current Scenario
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates, more than 700 million people in the developing world struggle with poor life quality due to bad eyesight. It is estimated that uncorrected vision results in $227 billion in lost productivity to the global economy. In India alone, an estimated 550 million (55 Crore) people require eyeglasses for vision correction. Blurry vision compromises one’s ability to work effectively, to read and learn in school, and to navigate surroundings with ease and safety. For many living in developing countries suffering from vision loss, a pair of eyeglasses could mean the difference between opportunity and loss of income and quality of life.
Activities
VisionSpring Foundation (VSF) is an NGO (not-for-profit) that does eye screening for the poor people, provides primary eye-care services, and eye health advice with FCRA Registration Number: 231661855. VSF also has the facility of providing eyeglasses to those who need them. VSF conducts community outreach activities and free eye-screening camps. The mobile eyecare units (vans) go to the remote interiors and provide last mile vision-care services to the poor. VSF also provides eye-care/eye-health advice centres and refers patients with complex eye diseases (such as cataract, etc.) to the nearest eye hospital. VSF helps change the lives of the poor people in India by aiding in restoring their vision.
VisionSpring Foundation (VSF) received a grant amount of USD ($) 4,837,979.68 from 1st January 2020 to 31st March 2023
Testimonials: Society for North-East Handmade Paper Development
Name: Kakoli Borthakur
Gender: Female
Age: 38 Years
Occupation: Weaver
Location: Majuli, Assam
Kakoli got herself registered for eye-screening as she was experiencing watery eyes and difficulty to see objects at near distance. She was not able to receive adequate wages and this in turn reduced her productivity. She then got her eyeglasses and was grateful to VisionSpring Foundation for giving her the gift of clear vision, which she required for conducting her day-to-day activities, especially at her workplace. She was relieved that her vision corrected by eyeglasses could help her get her work done on time. It would help her in sorting threads, stitching, yarning, etc., enabling her to deliver the required number of units per day.
Testimonials: Jaipur Rugs Foundation
Name: Ashok Kumar Shekawat
Gender: Male
Age: 42 Years
Occupation: Tailor
Location: Mapura, Jaipur, Rajasthan
Ashok registered himself for his eye-screening as he was not able to thread the needle. His poor vision caused challenges in achieving his targets and his final product required corrections. These challenges affected his efficiency at the workplace. After getting his eye-screening and eyeglasses, he was effective and efficient in his day-to-day activities. He encouraged his colleagues to get their eyes examined and extended his gratitude to the entire team of VisionSpring Foundation.
Testimonials: Kutch Craft Collective
Name: Suryaman Khatri
Gender: Male
Age: 40 Years
Occupation: Weaver
Location: Dhareshi Block, Kutch, Gujarat
Suryaman got himself registered for eye-screening as he was having trouble in reading, threading the needle, sewing, and stitching. Due to this, he was not able to carry out his day-to-day work. On wearing his eyeglasses, he witnessed the difference in his vision and was able to read, stich, and weave for longer hours. He could deliver his final products on time and without any corrections.
C. Improving the quality of lives and productivity of the factory workers (including improved workplace safety) by conducting the Clear Vision Workplaces program in the factories in India through eye-screenings and provision of eyeglasses
Background and Scope:
VisionSpring Foundation’s Clear Vision Workplace program is designed to increase the coverage of eye-screening and eyeglass wearing for working-age adults in India. Teams work with brands, national factory associations and individual factory management teams to integrate into the workplace regular vision screening and increase workers’ access to high quality, affordable eyeglasses. Factories provide a different context, given the large number of employees that work inside and in close proximity with one another throughout the workday.
Eye-Screening Statistics: 1st January 2023 to 31st March 2023
1.Distribution of people screened: Screened a total of 1,905 factory workers in the factories of Raj Overseas and Yati Overseas based in Panipat, Haryana, India. Out of the people screened, 89% (n = 1,696) were males and 11% (n = 209) were females.
2.Refractive error (poor vision) rate among the screened population: 50% (n = 952) of all the screened individuals identified with refractive error/presbyopia.
3.Referrals made for the screened population: 3% (n = 52) have been referred to the hospitals out of whom 35% (n = 18) identified with suspected cataract and 65% (n = 34) identified with other complex eye diseases had been referred for further diagnosis to tertiary care hospitals and/or community health centres.
4.Eyeglasses distribution: 99% (n = 943) of all population identified with refractive error/presbyopia received eyeglasses; Reading Glasses: 54% (n = 510), Prescription (Rx) Glasses: 46% (n = 433), and Pre-Cuts: 0% (n = 0).
5.First Time Wearers (FTWs): 93% (n = 880) of the people who received their eyeglasses got their first ever pair of eyeglasses through the eye-screening camps.
6.Post-coverage rate in the population was 99%.
Testimonials: Clear Vision Workplaces
Name: Prakash
Gender: Male
Age: 52 Years
Occupation: Finishing work (Carpet making)
Location: Raj Woollen Industries, Plot No E2, Industrial Area,
Panipat, Haryana
Prakash visited the outreach program organised by VisionSpring Foundation and registered himself for eye-screening. He was facing challenges in work due to poor vision, which caused him difficulties in completing his daily tasks. He was unable to thread the needle and complete his carpet making. He could deliver final products without many corrections. He also became eligible to take additional responsibilities, which helped him attain financial growth.
D. Improving the lives and educational outcomes of children through the provision of eyeglasses
Locations: Delhi NCR, Haryana, Punjab, and Maharashtra, India
VisionSpring Foundation collaborated with multiple mission-aligned organisations/bodies such as CMO Office, Noida, Kalgidhar Society, Hartek Foundation, Rotary International, National Programme for Control of Blindness & Visual Impairment (NPCBVI), and District Leprosy Office, Karnataka. VisionSpring Foundation conducted eye-screenings of 53,490 children and provided 13,825 eyeglasses from 1st January 2023 to 31st March 2023. These eyeglasses helped children to see clearly and improved learning outcomes as 45% of learning is through vision. It helped children to actively participate in school and will contribute tin making their future brighter.
Eye-Screening Statistics: 1st January 2023 to 31st March 2023
1. Children Screened for Vision: Screened 53,490 children in various states of India.
2. Eyeglasses distribution: 13,825 eyeglasses were distributed to children who had refractive error.
3. First Time Wearers (FTWs) of Eyeglasses: Out of 13,825 eyeglasses distributed to children, 4,539
were First Time Wearers (FTWs) of eyeglasses.
Testimonial:
Name: Arman Deep Singh
Age: 12
Class: 7
Arman was unable to see the blackboard clearly from his seat in his classroom. He was unable to focus on his studies due to blurry vision. He got himself examined through the program conducted by the VisionSpring Foundation and received eyeglasses, which made him see clearly and helped him perform well in academics.