Large crowd attends free Venezuelan eye clinic
The government of Venezuela has a growing cooperation programme with Belize including the Petrocaribe Initiative, a housing project and cultural exchanges. Today, another initiative got underway. It is known as Mission Miracle or Operacion Milagros and a large crowd descended at the City Center to receive free eye care treatment. There is already a similar initiative in place, which is sponsored by Cuba, but this time the Venezuelan government has taken up the task to take Belizeans to their country for surgery. The doctors will be visiting all the districts over a six day period, screening patients to take the ten day trip to Caracas and attending to those that can be treated locally. News Five visited the City Center to find out more about Mission Miracle.
Gabriel Sanchez, Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
“Now we’re doing the screening tests for the eye specifically and then we’re going o decide who’s going on the first flight and who has to wait on the second flight.”
Delahnie Bain
“What kind of problems have you been seeing so far?”
Gabriel Sanchez
“Basically, a lot of people suffer from diabetes and also sugar and high blood pressure.”
Delahnie Bain
“Any serious conditions?”
Gabriel Sanchez
“So far, no. The thing is that we already started so basically while we’re doing this process, probably two or three days later, we’ll see other complications that are pathologically difficult. This is a social program that is permanently here in Belize. So we’re going to have it here until we eradicate cataract and terigium totally free. People will have the opportunity to go to Venezuela for ten days, get the surgical operations right there and medications in Venezuela and we’re gonna bring them back totally cured.”
Dalbert Tucker, Ambassador for Foreign Trade, Min. of Foreign Affairs
“What Belize has put in is of course the cooperation of the Ministry of health personnel and other folks and as you can see some people here volunteering and have been doing that. The municipalities, City Councils, the Town Boards, all of them are involved right through the last six months in planning this programme. So we are putting a lot of in kind contribution; the Venezuelans are putting both technical and financial into it.”
While at the City Center, we also spoke to some patients to find out some of the problems they are facing and what treatments they are seeking.
Ismay Jones, Eye Care Patient
“I have something that’s growing on my eye. I have a growth on my eye.”
Delahnie Bain
“So you just want to see if you can get help to fix it?”
Ismay Jones
“Yes, I want to see what the doctor will tell me this morning.”
Jefferson Dawson, Eye Care Patient
“Double vision in one eye and being a technician, I work at Bravo Motors, I need my eyesight quite a bit and it bothers me so I have to go take care of it.”
Delahnie Bain
“What kind of problems you have with your eye?”
Kenneth Arthurs, Eye Care Patient
“Cataract. I’m not seeing through one of the eyes; the one on the right hand side as you can look right into it and see.”
Delahnie Bain
“So you’re hoping to go away for surgery to correct this?”
Kenneth Arthurs
“I would appreciate that because in Belize dehn can’t do it.”
Judith Gillett, Eye Care Patient
“I have blur vision and my eyes they pain me. The only thing it doesn’t run water but I have the pain and it gives me a lot of headache everyday so I know I need to change the glasses.”
Treatments at the City Center will run until eight tonight.
