Restore sightfor just $25

Tel: 1800 352 352 • Web: www.hollows.org.au

Nguyan Thi Tan VIETNAM

“The worst thing is to be unable to seeanyone, especially my grandchildren,and to be a burden to my family.”

Eighty-six-year-old Nguyan Thi Tan seenhere laughing with her grandchildrenwho she had not been able to see forthe previous three years.

Nguyen Thi Tan had a sight-restoringcataract operation at the Hai LangDistrict Health Centre in the Quang TriProvince of central Vietnam.

Photo courtesy of Sandy Scheltema/ The Age

The vision of The Fred Hollows Foundation is for a world where no one is needlesslyblind, and Indigenous Australians enjoy the same health and life expectancy as otherAustralians. The Foundation is independent, non-profit, politically unaligned and secular.

The Fred Hollows Foundation y 3

Fred and I started this foundation

around our dining room table in

1992. By that stage we knew he

didn’t have much longer to live;

cancer was making it more and

more difficult to do the sight-

saving work he loved.

He died less than one year later. It was

a terribly sad time, but brightened by

the knowledge that through The Fred

Hollows Foundation his work would

carry on.

Fred was many things to many people

– a husband, a father, a friend, a

skilled ophthalmologist and, for a few

politicians and bureaucrats, an

irritating thorn in their side. But above

all else he was a humanitarian, which

made him a terrific doctor. He truly

believed it was the role of the doctor

to serve, to help those in need.

That is why he was so passionate

about helping to improve health in

Indigenous Australia. And unlike

many, he didn’t just talk – he set

about helping local communities

do just that.

It is also why he worked so hard to

restore sight in the developing world.

Being blind in a poor country is

almost always a death sentence.

And in many cases the blindness is

unnecessary; it can either be avoided –

through early detection and

maintaining basic levels of hygiene

and nutrition, or it can be overcome –

with a simple operation.

Seventy-five percent of all cases of

blindness are unnecessary. It is a

shocking figure. But like Fred we have

to do more than be angry. We must do

something about it. And we are.

Since Fred died The Fred Hollows

Foundation has restored sight to well

over one million people in the

developing world. By forcing down the

price of equipment and introducing

modern surgical techniques The

Foundation has reduced the cost of

cataract surgery to as little as $25 in

some developing countries.

We lost Fred while there was still work

to do – now it is up to us to carry on.

Please consider making your own

contribution to Fred’s legacy – as little

as $25 can restore sight, and so offer

independence, dignity and hope.

Thank you for your support and for

helping Fred’s dream live on.

a message from

Gabi Hollows

Eye surgeon, Professor Fred Hollows, withdaughters (left to right) Anna, Ruth, Emmaand Rosa in 1992, one year before he passedaway. Photo courtesy of Newspix / Michael Amendolia.

On the front cover of this brochure is a photo of Fred in Vietnam in 1992. Fred

checked himself out of hospital to fly to Vietnam to fulfil a promise to help the

country set up an eye health program. The little boy by his side is Tran Van

Giap. Giap had an injured right eye and was in pain and suffering vision loss.

Fred examined Giap and organised an operation. Today Tran Van Giap is a

confident and able young man. He is the first of his farming family to attend

university and hopes to become a teacher. His goal is to use his skills to help

others – Fred would be so proud.

COVER: Photo courtesy of

www.michaelamendolia.com

The Foundation is a signatory of the Australian Council for International Development Code of Conduct.

Donations to The Foundation are used to support our programs in Australia and overseas.

The information contained in this publication is accurate at the time of printing. For more information contactresources@hollows.org. Unless otherwise indicated photos have been provided by www.hollows.org/photolibrary.

This brochure is a publication of The Fred Hollows Foundation ACN 070 556 642. The Fred Hollows Foundationworks for a world where no one is needlessly blind and Indigenous Australians enjoy the same health and lifeexpectancy as other Australians.

Gabi Hollows withVietnamese patient Tran VanGiap, 14 years after Giap’ssight-saving operation.

Photo:Peter

Carrette

4 y The Fred Hollows Foundation

Fred first came to the attention of the

Australian public when he led a

medical team through rural and

remote Australia in the late 1970s.

The team provided essential medical

treatment and, at the same time,

conducted a comprehensive survey

of eye health.

Fred was shocked by what he discovered,

particularly in Indigenous communities.

He found eye conditions that had been

all but eliminated in Australia’s towns

and cities. He described the situation as

similar to what he had seen in third

world countries.

Never one to bite his tongue, Professor

Fred Hollows developed a reputation

for telling it how it was, using the

media to alert Australians to the

hidden health emergency in the

country’s interior. He embarrassed

politicians and bureaucrats into action

– his direct approach winning him his

share of enemies and supporters.

A trip to war-torn Eritrea in 1985 had

a huge impact on Fred, sending him

on a path that would lead to the

establishment of The Fred Hollows

Foundation and the unprecedented

spread of modern cataract surgery in

the developing world.

Fred was shown how the Eritreans

were producing their own medicines

behind the battle lines, improvising

sterile laboratories from dug-out

bunkers. He decided then and there

that if the Eritreans could produce

hospital grade medicines in such

trying conditions then it was possible

for third world countries to produce

their own intraocular lenses,

essential for effective treatment of

cataract blindness.

In 1994, one year after he lost his

battle with cancer, Fred’s dream came

true – The Fred Hollows Foundation

opened modern intraocular lens

laboratories in both Eritrea and Nepal.

Fred’s driving passions – overcoming

avoidable blindness in the developing

world and improving Indigenous life

expectancy in Australia – make up the

day-to-day work of The Fred Hollows

Foundation. Both goals present

enormous challenges, but through

targeted, practical initiatives, The

Foundation is ensuring Fred’s work

lives on, delivering results and offering

hope, dignity and opportunity.

FoundationFoundationFred Hollows was born in New Zealand in

1929. He dabbled with the idea of joining

the clergy before settling on a career in

medicine. His studies led him abroad,

including stints in England, Wales and

eventually Australia.

Fredand his

achievementsà Restored sight to over

1,000,000 people

à Pioneered moderntechniques of cataractsurgery

à Reduced cost ofcataract surgery to aslittle as $25 in somedeveloping countries

à Set up independent andcommercially successfulintraocular lens (IOL)laboratories in Nepal and Eritrea

à The laboratoriesexport to more than 50 countries and have producedover 3 million sight- saving lenses

à Price of IOLs reducedfrom over $100 to just $8

1929 Born in Dunedin,

New Zealand

1951 Attends Medical School,

University of Otago

1970 Begins work in Bourke, outback

Australia

1971 Helps set up first Aboriginal

medical centre

1979 Marries Gabi O’Sullivan

1985 Travels to Nepal

1987 Visits Eritrea

1988 Diagnosed with cancer

1990 Named Australian of the Year

1992 Sets up The Fred HollowsFoundation

1993 Loses battle with cancer and isburied in the red earth ofBourke cemetery

2006 Named as one of The Bulletinmagazine’s 100 mostinfluential Australians

For more information about

Fred Hollows and the work of The

Foundation visit www.hollows.org.au

Fred Hollows

The Fred Hollows Foundation y 5

Where we work:over 20 countries worldwide

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* Programs administered by The Fred Hollows Foundation NZ

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Phot

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Hare and Mina Hare and his sister Mina were both born blind.Due to the dangerous mountain terrain of theirvillage they were rarely able to play outside withthe other children. Following the operations thatrestored their sight they can now join in gamesas well as attend classes at the local school.Their parents are able to devote more time toworking, which enables them to consistently put food on the table.

Haraha Lari Following eye surgery 67-year-old HarahaLari can once again identify ripples on thewater, helping him catch fish and providefor his family.

Dr

Ru

it

Dr Sanduk Ruit Dr Ruit trained with Fred Hollows and thetwo were great friends. The Nepalesesurgeon has probably performed moresight-saving operations than anyone else inthe world, at last count approximately70,000. Today Dr Ruit is passing on his skillsto other doctors in the developing world,training ophthalmologists from countriessuch as China, India and Vietnam.

1. AFGHANISTAN

2. AUSTRALIA

3. BANGLADESH

4. CAMBODIA

5. CHINA

6. COOK ISLANDS*

7. ERITREA

8. FIJI*

9. INDIA

10. KENYA

11. LAO PDR

12. MYANMAR

13. NEPAL

14. NORTH KOREA

15. PAKISTAN

16. PAPUA NEW GUINEA*

17. RWANDA

18. SOLOMON ISLANDS*

19. SOUTH AFRICA

20 SRI LANKA

21 TANZANIA

22. TIBET

23. TIMOR LESTE*

24. VANUATU*

25. VIETNAM

6 y The Fred Hollows Foundation

Cataract blindness occurs when

the natural lens of the eye

becomes cloudy, causing gradual

loss of vision and ultimately

blindness.

It is rather like looking through a

window in a bathroom that has

become fogged up with steam.

Cataract is the most common cause

of blindness in the world – 50%

of avoidable blindness is due

to cataracts.

Studies show that in developing

countries blindness can lead to

dramatically lower life expectancy.

People are often unable to work or

look after themselves, feeling as if they

are a burden on their family.

The good news is that cataract

blindness can be cured. The operation

to remove a cataract and insert a

replacement intraocular lens (IOL) is

relatively routine, taking only twenty

minutes and costing as little as $25.

The operation is performed under

local anaesthetic and bandages can be

removed after just 24 hours.

Other causes of avoidableblindness:

• Glaucoma

• Trachoma

• Uncorrected refractiveerror (need for glasses)

• Diabetic retinopathy

An intraocular lens, or IOL, is a thinplastic lens that is inserted into theeye to replace the cloudy, cataractaffected, natural lens.

Up until the mid-1990s these tiny

lenses cost around $150 each, pushing

them well out of reach of people in

developing countries, who account for

90% of the world’s cases of blindness.

Fred Hollows once

referred to IOLs as “the

most expensive bits of

plastic in the world.”

He realised that the only way for

developing countries to get the lenses

at a cheaper rate was to produce

their own.

Sadly Fred did not live to see his dream

become a reality – he passed away

in 1993, just one year before The

Fred Hollows Foundation opened

intraocular lens laboratories in Nepal

and Eritrea.

Today they are fully independent and

commercially successful businesses,

exporting IOLs to more than

50 countries.

And best of all, by producing their own

IOLs the laboratories have been able to

drop the price. They now cost about

$8 per lens, ensuring even the poorest

countries have access to modern

cataract surgery.

Curingcataractblindness

The IOL story

Prior to IOL technology,

cataract operations

deprived patients of the

ability to focus, requiring

them to wear thick

glasses following the

procedure. This solution

provided poor quality

vision and was often only

temporary – when glasses

were lost or damaged,

patients effectively lost

their sight again.

Photo

courtesy

ofw

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.lann

onh

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59-year-old Pakistani father of five,Mohammad Hassan, has only partial vision as a result of the cataract in his right eye.

A lathe etches the shape of the Fred Hollowsintraocular lens into raw perspex. Photo courtesy of www.lannonharley.com

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The Fred Hollows Foundation y 7

Health at home:Achieving results in remote Australia

(left to right) Trisala McDonald, Shevonne Ashley and Jeffrey Frank McDonald at BarungaWomen’s Resource Centre, east of Katherine in the Northern Territory. The Foundation hashelped the Centre set up a nutrition education program for mothers and provides asupplementary meals program for ‘at risk’ children aged 0-5 years.

Fred Hollows delivering essential eye care in outback Australia.

Photo

courtesy

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Right: RegistrarJohn Chang checksthe vision of BrianTjapaltjarri atHaasts BluffCommunity, locatedfour hours drivenorthwest of AliceSprings, CentralAustralia.

“I believe that the

basic attribute of

mankind is to look

after each other.”

Fred Hollowsqu

ote

Fred Hollows was passionateabout improving health and lifeexpectancy in Australia’sIndigenous communities. And intrue Fred style he wasn’t contentjust talking about the problem –he demanded action.

Fred headed up the National

Trachoma and Eye Health Program

(NTEHP) in the late 70s. The team

travelled far and wide through rural

Australia, offering eye care and

treatment for locals who would

otherwise be out of reach.

Today The Fred Hollow Foundation is

carrying on Fred’s legacy, working with

remote Indigenous communities to come

up with practical, targeted initiatives

that deliver better health and improved

levels of life expectancy. Key programs

focus on nutrition, literacy and eye health.

The Central Australian Eye Health

Program, coordinated by The Foundation,

helps provide ophthalmological services

to 55,000 people over 1.6 million

square kilometres.

The Foundation also runs an Outreach

Optometry Program across the Top

End of the Northern Territory,

continuing Fred’s work of taking

health and eye care services to people

in need living in remote regions.

Phot

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When four-year-old Grace Wambui arrived

at the Rift Valley Eye Unit, in Kenya, she

had lost sight in her right eye due to

painful swelling.

Blindness in the developing world can be a death

sentence. Studies show that up to 60% of children

living in developing countries will die within one

year of going blind.

But it doesn’t have to be this way.

Fred Hollows spent the last years of his lifebringing light to the eyes of others. Before hedied he set up The Fred Hollows Foundation tocarry on his work.

Since it was established, in 1992, The FredHollows Foundation has helped restore sight toover one million people like Grace Wambui.

In many cases all it takes to give the gift of sightis a relatively simple operation, taking less than20 minutes and costing as little as $25.

Donate now to helpFred’s work live on.

Restore sight for just $25A brighter future thanks to Fred Hollows

Photo courtesy www.lannonharley.com

Restore sight for just $25A brighter future thanks to Fred Hollows

I’LL GIVE $25 $50 $100 $200

My choice $______________

AND/ORMiracle Club: I would like to join The Fred Hollows

Foundation Miracle Club with a regular monthly gift of:

$25 $50 $75

Other: $__________ (min. $15 per month)

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MY PAYMENT

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The Fred Hollows Foundation

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MY DETAILS

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Please send me details on making a gift to The Foundation in my Will

If for any reason you do not wish to receive our appeal updates, please write to us at: The Fred Hollows Foundation, Locked Bag 3100, Burwood NSW 1805 or call 1800 352 352.

Donations of $2 and over are tax-deductible.

YES, I will make a gift to restore sight and prevent blindness.

4 easy ways to donateMail the coupon below toLocked Bag 3100 Burwood NSW 1805

Donate onlinewww.hollows.org.au

Fax coupon to(02) 8741 1999

Call1800 352 352