Eye Foundation of America Launches "100,000 Lives" Campaign; Seeks to Raise $1 Million to Fight Blindness in Rural India
MORGANTOWN, West Virginia, July 9, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The Eye Foundation of America, announced today that it has launched its "100,000 Lives" fund-raising campaign with the goal of providing eye care to 100,000 people in rural India during 2014.
(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130529/NE22746)
The campaign will focus on those who suffer from diabetes and are at risk for, or may already be suffering from diabetic retinopathy — a condition that often leads to blindness if left untreated. Studies have shown that if diabetic retinopathy is detected and treated early, blindness can be averted up to 90 percent of the time.
It's estimated that more than 61 million people in India have diabetes and that one out of every two are unaware of their condition. More than half India's diabetic population lives in rural areas where needed health care is virtually non-existent.
Dr. V. K. Raju, founder and medical director of the Eye Foundation of America, said he is looking for the campaign to raise the USD$1 million needed to help fund the massive effort.
The campaign furthers Dr. Raju's 30-year global crusade against blindness which has been recently recognized by American Medical Association (AMA) in its honoring Dr. Raju with its prestigious Dr. Nathan Davis International Award. The "Excellence in Medicine Award" recognizes Dr. Raju as an extraordinary person in medicine and offers tribute to the individual lives that he has touched through sight-saving procedures worldwide.
"Our fund raising campaign has been created to cover both the hard costs of getting our people and equipment to the remote areas that are so desperate for this care, as well as a way for us to economically source the technology and equipment that we will need," Dr. Raju said.
Dr. Raju reports that the Eye Foundation will actually start this eye care endeavor during his visit to India this September. He also comments, "It is the generosity of our supporters that enables this important work to continue and expand further".
About the Eye Foundation of America
The Eye Foundation of America is dedicated to combating avoidable blindness. It has advanced the visual health of more than 1.7 million people around the world. As founder, Dr. Raju has more than 30 years of experience in providing free and subsidized eye treatment in remote areas of the developing countries. www.EyeFoundationOfAmerica.org
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