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VISION
MATTERS
April 2014
Issue 001
Sankara Eye Care Institutions Quarterly Newsletter
1st
ISSUE1
Message from the Board
April - June 2014
Light at the End of
the Tunnel
Yet another milestone in the journey of Sankara Eye Care
Institutions- India, the much awaited Newsletter ‘Vision Matters’ has
seen its birth.
This quarterly Newsletter from the House of Sankara is going to be
the vital link between the Institution and the innumerable number of
Patrons, Friends, Well-wishers, Associates, Beneficiaries and the
committed ‘Team Sankara’- the Doctors, Administrators and Staff.
The performance of an Institution in its area of focus, the challenges
faced in accomplishing them, the happier moments on reaching the
milestones, the satisfying feedback from the beneficiaries, the new
ventures, technological innovations - to share all of them with like
minded people, the newsletter is the ideal tool.
‘21st May 1977’ – as we look back with pardonable pride, we
recollect with nostalgia and fond memories, the day when the seed
was sown by the Sankaracharyas of Kanchi for this Humanitarian
Movement. Over 3 decades have passed by. We have come a long
way. There are miles to go…
Thousands of people with lofty ideals, people who have experienced
and cherished the Joy of Giving have walked hand in hand with us.
Yes, all of us together constitute the extended Sankara Family. With
gratitude we remember each and every one of them on this happy
occasion of the launch of ‘Vision Matters’.
Covering the entire range of activities in the various Sankara Eye
Hospitals across the Country, we are sure, ‘Vision Matters’ will make an
interesting and enjoyable reading to all our friends.
‘Vision’ signifies the physical vision, the mental vision and the spiritual
vision. The holistic development of all the three dimensions of Vision is
important to every one of us. While we at Sankara strive to lighten the
lives of the millions with the physical vision, we pray to the Acharyas
and the Lord Almighty to give all of us the much required mental and
spiritual vision – Thamasoma Jyothir Gamaya.
Dr. R. V. Ramani Founder & Managing Trustee
Dr. Radha Ramani
Co-Founder
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Mr. S. V. Balasubramaniam
Chairman
Adversity, patience and perseverance
have a magical effect before which
difficulties disappear and obstacles
vanish. They can shape you, give you a
value and most of all a self-esteem that
is priceless. God bless perseverance
for it is not easy.
50-year-old Thangamani will vouch
for that. She hails from Vridhachalan, a
small village near Cuddalore in Tamil
Nadu. 25 years ago, she had what one
would count to be most to be content
in life. A loving husband and 3 children,
a girl and 2 boys. She had gone to
Mumbai along with her family to visit
some relatives. They were travelling in
the local train, when a flurry of surging
crowd led to her falling off the train.
She lost both her legs in the mishap.
And that was just the beginning. She
was no longer able to take care of her
family. She became dependent on
others for the most basic of chores. Her
husband deserted her and remarried.
That he continued to support the family
financially was a small consolation.
About 9 years after the incident she
began experiencing blurring of vision
in her left eye. The limited support she
got from her ex-husband was barely
enough to take care of the young
children.
Impact >
The failing vision and helplessness cast a pall of gloom on her.
Fortunately one of her neighbours came across a pamphlet
announcing a free eye check-up
camp near their village and immediately told Thangamani about
it. Her elder sister accompanied
her to the camp, where she was
assessed and counselled for a
cataract surgery. She was brought
to the base hospital of Sankara in
Coimbatore along with her sister,
and treated at no cost to her. The
care and the attention provided
to her at Sankara warmed her
heart. Over the years, the children
grew up. Her daughter got married and her 2 sons got employed
as coolies. About 4 years later, she
refaced blurring and watering in her
right eye. She returned to Sankara by
herself to seek treatment. Unfortunately
for her, this time she was detected with
uncontrolled diabetes. With regular
medical care being beyond her reach
and awareness, she had no idea of the
condition she was in. She was referred
to the care of a general physician to
help her control the diabetes. She visited Sankara via our camps thrice over
a period of 6 years, where she was
assessed and counselled to control her
high blood sugar. Fortunately, this June,
when she visited our camp, she was
found to in a better shape for surgery.
She was brought to the hospital to the
base hospital where she was provided
with medical care and special diet to
ensure surgical fitness. She underwent
the surgery on 27th June. A day later,
she was all smiles and relief. “It was disappointing to visit so many times and
return without treatment but I had faith
in the Sankara team. They taught me
how to take better care of myself and
always tried to lift my spirits. Thanks
to them my world is much clearer and
brighter today.”
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Triumph in the Face of
Adversity
It is moment of great pride and joy
when we see our patients not just
attempt to pick up the pieces of
their lives but emerge as winners.
Rakesh has certainly done so as
he scored 92.5% in his Secondary
School Leaving Certificate (SSLC)
exams this year. A month before
his exams, he suffered a grievous
injury to his left eye as a result of a
classroom fight that went horribly
wrong. One of his teachers took
him to a local eye hospital where he
received primary treatment. He was
transferred to Sankara Eye Hospital, Bangalore as the injury merited
greater attention.
“His eye injury was critical,” said Dr.
Gladys Rodrigues, our eye specialist, who treated Rakesh. “He had
lost most of his vision. Both his eye
ball and lobe were torn and had
to be repaired. He was bleeding
profusely inside the eye and was
able to perceive only light. After a
scan, we saw that there was retinal
detachment and posted him for
surgery. He was put on intravenous
antibiotics.”
The 16-year-old braved
agonizing pain, bore two surgeries
that restored 60% of his vision,
struggled with medication and
innumerable visits to the hospital,
but still slogged over his textbooks.
Studying at home was tough as
he had been advised to lie in face
down position. “We asked him to
keep a face-down position because
he had oil in his eye and he needed
to put pressure on the eyeball.
It must have been challenging to
study in that position.” says
Dr. Rodrigues.
At Sankara, we have made it our lifelong mission to bring
quality and affordable eye care to the doorstep of those
who are in need. In May, we continued to reach out to
the people in Rudraprayag and Guptakashi, two of the
worst affected places in the flash floods that ravaged
Uttarakhand last year. Medical facilities remain scarce and
with lack of awareness amongst the local population. Low
population density makes the area to be covered more
and number of patients served is less. Braving the serpentine roads and treacherous terrains, the Sankara Eye Care
managed Nirmal Eye Institute held a free eye screening in
both these places, where our team of doctors and paramedics assessed more than 500 patients out of which 69
were taken in for surgery.
Despite almost losing the eye, his
confidence never dipped. The
struggle was worth it with him
emerging triumphant. Rakesh is
scheduled to undergo one more
operation after which he hopes to
regain full vision. He has joined PES
College and aspires to become a
doctor, preferably an eye specialist,
so that he can treat cases like his.
A Decade in Eye Care - Sankara Eye
Hospital Guntur 10th Anniversary
This year brought us great joy as Sankara Eye Hospital Guntur celebrated its 10th annual day.
The 10th Annual Day celebrations of Sankara Hospital Guntur were held in the hospital
premises. It was a vibrant cultural evening with our longtime employees being felicitated with
the Long Service Awards. The occasion was made more special with the Vision Care
Technician Programme graduation ceremony which was conducted the same evening.
Mr. Ratnagiri Babu a member of the Jana Chaitanya Family, a generous patron of Sankara
Eye Hospital, and our special invitee, Mr. K. Nageshwar Rao expressed appreciation for the
people of the region for the consistent high quality eye care being provided at the hospital.
Founders, Dr. R.V. Ramani & Dr. Radha Ramani, conveyed their greetings to the entire team at
Guntur.
Col. Dr. Shankar Ramany, CEO emphasized on the importance of Patient Delight and Self
Sufficiency to all the staff in the day to day functioning and thinking which has allowed the
institution to grow into a vital referral eye hospital for the region.
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Oasis of Eye Care
Visitors from Minnesota
This year at Sankara Eye Hospital, Bangalore, we had the pleasure of having with us,
students from the ACARA summer institute,
a programme for social impact entrepreneurs from the University of Minnesota and
the Indian Institute of Human Settlement.
They spent a day understanding Sankara’s
model of sustainable community eye care.
Roll of Honour
We are proud of Dr. Rhibhu Soni, Consultant (Vitreo Retina) for her impressive achievements this quarter.
Her article, ‘Closed Globe Injuries’ was published in DOS Times Mar. 2014 Vol. 19w, June 2014. She also
participated in 5 continuing medical education events.
Continuing Medical Education events:
• Advances in Glaucoma Treatment, Ludhiana Ophthalmology Society, April 2014
• Recent treatment Guidelines in treating DME & Diabetic Retinopathy, JCRS, Jalandhar, May 2014
• Advances in the treatment of Uveitis, PGI, Chandigarh, May 2014
• Treatment Advances in Ocular Tumours, DMC Hospitals, May 2014
• Femtosecond Laser Advances & Glued & Premium IOL’s, Ludhiana Ophthalmology Society, June 2014
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Sankara Eye Hospital Develops
We are
so happy to
tell you!
Smartphone
Ophthalmoscope
Recently Sankara Eye Hospitals spread its wings in Aamchi Mumbai with the inauguration
of the Bhojraj Chanrai Sankara Eye Hospital in Malad to fulfil its quest of 2020 vision for
all. Sankara Eye hospital will be soon ushering in winds of change as we open our doors in
Kanpur, completely dedicated to community eye care. Our city hospital in Kanpur has
already become the destination of choice for patients looking for the very best in
consultation, diagnosis, treatment and surgery for their eye ailments.
I
R
BA
U
NP
UM
KA
M
Our ubiquitous smart phone can do
anything- it’s a lexicon, navigator, music
player, movie maker, odometer and what not!
Now, the phone can be used as an
ophthalmoscope too!
The ingenious team of doctors at Sankara
Eye Hospital, Bangalore, headed by
Dr. Mahesh P. Shanmugam and including
Dr. Mishra, Dr. M. Kumar, Dr. Rajesh R,
Dr. S. Reddy, Dr. Rodrigues and Dr. Sevda,
have devised a way to use an ordinary
smartphone as a direct ophthalmoscope.
It can be used to check and diagnose
common yet potentially harmful eye
problems, like Glaucoma, Diabetic
Retinopathy etc.
Images taken on the device can be
easily transferred through social media, MMS
and e-mails, and can also be archived in a
simple and affordable way. Although it cannot
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totally replace a real ophthalmoscope, it will
help seeking the opinion of eye specialists
even if they are elsewhere and who can then
prescribe treatment. Even a person with the
basic understanding and knowledge of
ophthalmology and the eye can use it.
A big advantage is that its low cost makes
it possible for everyone to use it, right from
grassroot organizations to bigger institutes
and experts for eye screening and teleophthalmology, thus proving to be a major help
in improving eye care in peripheral camps
and remote areas with limited facilities and
instruments.
The smartphone ophthalmoscope is yet to
enter the commercial market but it is already
being used by doctors and is fast gaining
popularity. The Sankara Eye Hospital and its
team deserve kudos for turning an everyday
smartphone into a smarter innovation.
Sankara Eye Hospital
Sankara Eye Hospital
401/402, 4th Floor, SEJ Plaza
Near Nutan School, Marve Road, Malad-West
Mumbai - 400064. Mob : 7710077180
14/73, VIP Road, Civil Lines, Kanpur - 208001
Ph : 0512-2530582, 2530116, 2530118
Mob : 7703006608
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Girl with the Golden
Heart
Events >
Founder’s Day
Celebrations
White Ribbon
Campaign
On 21st May, 1977, a spark was lit and a movement was
born in a 100 sq. ft. centre in Coimbatore. 3 decades
and a million restored smiles later, we are among the
largest providers of eye care in India.
Battle against Retinoblastoma
World
Environment Day
Sankara Eye Hospital observed the International
Retinoblastoma Week in the second week of May with
a victory celebration for the young survivors of
Retinoblastoma and their parents at Cubbon Park.
Along with a team of volunteers from ‘Little More Love’,
we organized fun games for children.
The revelry continued with the TCS World 10K
Marathon held on 18th of May. Students from Sankara
college of Optometry and members of team Sankara
were joined by hundreds of others who participated in
this campaign to promote awareness about
Retinoblastoma.
On June 5, World Environment Day was celebrated
with gusto across our units. In Krishnankoil and
Shimoga, we collaborated with the Department of
Forestry and 500 saplings were distributed to our staff
and patients. In Bangalore, our beneficiaries and staff
came together to create a beautiful flower garden to
mark our commitment to a greener tomorrow.
Students Visit
They say child is the father of man. Little Anjana has been a
glowing role model of that. At a tender age of 7, she said she didn’t
want any presents on her birthday. In a surprising display of
wisdom, she decided to donate and even told her friends to do
so to help people see. She took up our ‘Gift of Vision’ as her pet
project and began a mini crusade to convince her friends, relatives
and well-wishers to support Sankara Eye Foundation in eradicating
curable blindness. She was inspired by her mother, Dr. Gouri, a
doctor practising in Scotland, who had earlier raised funds for
Sankara Eye Foundation by successfully climbing Mount
Kilimanjaro.
“I chose this charity as I know how important eyes are. At the
beginning of my 3rd grade I was struggling to see the board in
class despite my glasses. My teacher raised concerns and my
mummy took me to the opticians who realised my prescription had
doubled.
In Scotland eye care is free for all ages and I am very lucky in this
regard. I get my eyes tested every 3 months and enjoy visiting the
eye clinic. I want children in India to have the same. That is why I
opted for this charity instead of presents”, says the little crusader.
Bright Minds,
Bright Eyes
All Saints Institute of Medical Science & Research,
Ludhiana
Final year students of Bachelors of Physiotherapy from
All Saints Institute of Medical Science & Research,
Ludhiana visited Sankara Eye Hospital, Ludhiana on
8th May 2014. Dr. Ramneet and Dr. Ruchi educated
them about various ophthalmologic instruments as well
as surgical techniques such as Small Incision Cataract
Surgery (SICS) and Phaco surgery. They also spent
some time with the Optometry faculty learning about
Vision therapy and Low Vision aids.
Expansion of Inpatient Services Sankara Eye
Hospital, R.S.Puram, Coimbatore
We at Sankara are pleased to announce the inauguration of an 11 bed air
conditioned semi private inpatient facility at our city hospital in R.S.Puram, Coimbatore.
Our esteemed founders, Dr. R.V. Ramani and Dr. Radha Ramani graced the occasion
and did the honours of inaugurating the facility.
Mr. Nestin Vas, Mr. Harish & Mr. Tharanath and their
colleagues, along with our team at Sankara Eye
Hospital, Bangalore entertained children and helped
them celebrate their victory.
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In a sunlit class, more than a 100 pair of curious eyes
and ears hung on to every word of ours as our team
from Sankara Eye Hospital Dr. Babubhai Patel City
Centre in Anand patiently explained the importance
of and ways for better eye care. Following the
presentation, children from various grades of Sri
Sri Ravishankar Vidya Mandir were screened for
refractive errors. The teachers were also trained in
basics of ophthalmic screening, thus becoming our
primary agents in tackling preventable blindness
amongst children.
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Awareness >
Our World in a Nutshell
Allergic Eye Diseases
When you say, “I have allergies,” people
expect you to sneeze. But your nose isn’t the
only part of your body that gets hit during an
allergy attack. You can also have red,
swollen, and itchy eyes.
You may start to have symptoms as soon as
the eyes come in contact with the allergen,
or you may not have symptoms for 2 - 4 days.
Usually you’ll also have other allergy
symptoms, such as a stuffy, runny nose and
sneezing.
Also known as “allergic conjunctivitis”, like
any other allergic reaction, they are caused
by a misfiring of the immune system, the
body’s natural defense mechanism.
The budding doctor wanted to learn how Sankara
runs and the force behind our drive to provide free
eye care to the rural poor. While she was here,
she went through a whirl of activities. On her first
day, she keenly observed how the patients were
oriented when they arrived from the camp and
how they were examined in the assessment area.
Later on she helped our staff in applying stickers
on patients’ charts, keep count of the lens boxes,
distribute spectacles to the patients and also take
their pictures after their surgery. She even learnt
to clean the patients’ eyes, change their dressings
and check if their eyes were dilated.
She would often help serve the meals and chat
with the patients in the wards. In a short span of
time she became very dear to our patients and
staff. The feelings were mutual as Shanmita said,
“I have learnt so much here. So many people need
care but they cannot access it as they can’t visit the
hospitals. They have little to support themselves
with. It is a very nice initiative to go all the way to
the villages and bringing the patients here to
provide care. They not only get their vision back
here but also regain their livelihood.”
tearing or runny eyes, swollen eyelids,
soreness, burning, or pain and sensitivity
to light.
Did you know?
Shanmita is a sprightly high schooler from Union
City, California. She interned with us for 2 weeks
this June. Having heard about the community
outreach activities of Sankara through a charity
dance event she had participated in back home,
she expressed an interest to intern with us when
she came over to India for her holidays.
Treating Eye Allergies
It is usually recurrent, with flare-ups and
remissions being commonplace. It occurs
mostly in younger age groups and in
summers.
Prevention is better than Cure – avoid the
allergenic agents!
Usual suspects - pollen, dust mites, pet
dander, feathers, and other indoor or outdoor
allergens
Makeup, perfume, or other chemicals or even
contact lenses can trigger an allergic attack.
Symptoms to watch out for:
Red, irritated eyes, itchiness, lacrimation,
Doctors often prescribe anti histaminic eye
drops and mast cell stabilizers to curb the
allergy. Steroid drops are advised in more
severe cases and are to be used strictly
under doctor’s advice.
Caution!
Do not self-prescribe and use drops meant
for other areas of body for your eyes. Always
consult the doctor for treatment.
Performance Hightlights
+ Outreach Performance for April-June 2014
+ Eye bank data Apr-June 2014
25000
Harvested Utilized Research Sent to Preserved Discarded
other banks
20000
308
181106
7
12
2
15000
Inauguration of Sankaram Swarna Jyothi by
Sankara Eye Hospital, Shimoga
+ No. of Camps Conducted: 418
10000
Shimoga
Anand
5000
58%
This eventful quarter saw the introduction of exclusive screening camps offering
affordable packages for surgical eye care for the middle class, Sankaram Swarna
Jyothi. The first exclusive Sankaram camp in Shimoga was held on 20th of April at
Lions’ Eye Hospital, Bhadravathi. The event was made special by the presence of our
patrons, Mrs. Vrinda Bhat and Mr. Narendra Bhat, and our Chief Administrative Officer,
Ms. Gayatri Shantharam among others. Mr. K.G. Srinivasan, president of the zonal
Lions Club did the honours of inaugurating the event.
0
50%
Rishikesh
Anand
Bangalore
Coimbatore Guntur
Krishnankoil Ludhiana
Rishikesh
Shimoga
Bangalore
Coimbatore
Patient screened
4586
9265
20263 13440 5539
Surgeries performed
1307
4582
8500
Anand
Total number of patient screened : 80,803
Total number of free surgeries : 31,815
Guntur
5779
Krishnankoil
2959
Bangalore
33%
Ludhiana
Rishikesh
10631 6296
1115
2661
60%
Shimoga
10783
Ludhiana
48%
4912
Total number of children screened : 14,503
Number of schools screened : 333
Total number of paediatric surgeries : 223
87%
Coimbatore
60%
Krishnankoil
22%
Guntur
10
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Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Medical Trust
Sankara Eye Centre
Sathy Road, Sivanandapuram
Coimbatore 641035
Phone Number: +91 422 4236789
Fax Number: +91 422 2666460
[email protected]
www.sankaraeye.com
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