International Rescue Committee (IRC)

New-found sight

Photos: 
<p>I meet Tigist in her village in Benishangul-Gumuz, a remote region about 700 km west of Ethiopia&#39;s capital, Addis Ababa. &nbsp;Tigist&rsquo;s father, Bogale Getahun, a security guard, told me he and his wife knew something was wrong with their daughter when she was just seven months old. &ldquo;There was this strange spot in her eyes. We took her to see a doctor, and he told us she needed surgery in Addis Ababa. But we couldn&rsquo;t afford it.&quot;</p>
<p>Tigist tentatively follows her older brother through the village. Children who cannot see become especially dependent on other people. They are also more likely to become malnourished and sick, and to die at an early age.&nbsp;That&rsquo;s why the IRC has been traveling to impoverished communities around Ethiopia to find children with cataracts and help them.</p><br /><br /><em>Photo: Makeda Yasenlul/IRC</em><br /><br />
<p>Fortunately, when I examined Tigist, I found that her cataracts could still be operated on. I brought the little girl and her father to Addis Ababa for the procedure. &nbsp;</p><br /><br /><em>Photo: Makeda Yasenlul/IRC</em><br /><br />
<p>The day before the surgery, Tigist is examined to determine the kind of anesthesia the doctors will use. The nurse said that Tigist is underweight for a girl her age.</p><br /><br /><em>Photo: Makeda Yasenlul/IRC</em><br /><br />
<p>Tigist rests in her father&#39;s arms after the surgery. Soon she will be able to remove her bandages and start exploring her world with her own eyes.</p><br /><br /><em>Photo: Makeda Yasenlul/IRC</em><br /><br />
<p>I walk with Tigist around the hospital as she experiments with her new-found sight. The little girl shrieked in joyful surprise when she saw her own shadow for the first time.</p><br /><br /><em>Photo: Makeda Yasenlul/IRC</em><br /><br />
<p>Tigist plays with a little boy named Beshir, who also had successful eye surgery though the IRC in Addis Ababa.</p><br /><br /><em>Photo: Makeda Yasenlul/IRC</em><br /><br />
<p>Less than a week after her operation Tigist was back home and playing with her friends. Her parents were overwhelmed by their daughter&#39; s happiness and new-found independence. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t wait for her to start school next year,&rdquo; Bogale said.</p><br /><br /><em>Photo: Makeda Yasenlul/IRC</em><br /><br />

Half of the approximately 40,000 children in Ethiopia who are blind suffer from cataracts, a clouding of the lens in the eye. Although the treatment is relatively simple, poverty puts it out of the reach of most families. The IRC is helping children get the surgery they need. IRC blindness prevention coordinator Bayleyegn Birhanu shares the story of one of them, 10-year-old Tigist Bogale.