Mission for a clear vision: UMR conducts free cataract surgeries in Jordan

AMMAN — The United Muslim Relief (UMR) organisation is performing 100 free cataract surgeries targeting Jordanians, Syrians and other nationalities in Jordan.

The five-day surgery mission started on Saturday at Shami Eye Centre, with 20 surgeries performed each day, in cooperation with the Islamic Medical Association of North America and the Syrian Expatriate Medical Association, a statement from the UMR said. 

“According to the latest assessment, cataracts [a clouding of the lens in the eye which leads to a decrease in vision] is responsible for 51 per cent of world blindness, which represents about 20 million people [2010],” according to the World Health Organisation.

Performed by “top cataract surgeon” Baseer Khan, the surgeries are carried out in Amman and the north of Jordan, Atef Dalgamouni, UMR operation manager, told The Jordan Times, adding that the patients underwent an eye examination before being selected. 

The patients with the most damaged eyesight were selected for the programme.

Dalgamouni noted that this is the second mission of its kind performed by the organisation in the Kingdom. In December 2016, around 118 surgeries had already been performed. 

“Before calling the doctor, the UMR prepares files and names through Shami Eye Centre, and then the centre performs the necessary tests to make sure that the patient needs surgery,” Dalgamouni added.

Saadah Mustafa, a 64-year-old woman from Zarqa, 22km northeast of Amman, and a beneficiary of the surgery in 2016 thanked the organisation. “I am grateful to the UMR. I can see clearly now and I can read the Koran,” she said.