Krishnavelli Pillay describes the Eiohn Hayes Eyecare Outreach Program as angels on earth. She is amongst the 28 people who recently had cataract surgeries under the foundation. Sometime in 2022, she says she started noticing that objects were becoming blurry, and she could no longer see objects at a distance. Krishnavelli then sought medical help when she heard about the screenings being done by the Eiohn Hayes Eyecare Outreach Program in January 2023. Though she lives out of Grahamstown in Port Elizabeth, she had her children bring her to the outreach clinic for testing and screening. The screening process revealed some rather sad news for Krishnavelli. She says she was distraught to be diagnosed with cataracts in both eyes.
In August of the same year, she lost her mother. This on top of her eye health problems was almost too much for her, but when the Eiohn Hayes Eyecare Outreach Program announced surgeries to be carried out in October, Krishnavelli says she chose to put her faith in the Ophthalmologist. She met with Dr Pons, the Ophthalmologist who works with the outreach clinic. The doctor explained to her that hers was a high-risk case, but Krishnavelli chose to believe that God had sent the program to her in her time of need for a reason. She assured Dr Pons that she was willing to take the risk since her eyesight had deteriorated to the point where she could no longer see road signs or even cook, which is something she enjoyed and did regularly.
On 10 October 2023 Krishnavelli came to Grahamstown for her cataract surgery. She chose to start with her left eye then have her right eye operated on later as recommended by the doctor. The surgery went well without any complications and Krishnavelli came back to the outreach clinic for her 2 weeks post- op checkup. At the post- op checkup, she was happy to reveal that she can now make out objects from a distance. She says some days she feels balanced but other days she is not due to the right eye which still has cataract.
Krishnavelli got emotional as she expressed her gratitude for the kindness, she experienced from everyone working in the outreach program. She annunciated how important sight is, declaring that after the surgery she feels as though she has been given a new lease on life. She is now able to see with her left eye and do things she could no longer do. “You never truly realize how important sight is until it is threatened,” she said. She went on to profusely thank the Eiohn Hayes Eyecare Outreach Program saying, “Every single one of the people who helped me are angels on earth.”
Krishnavelli says she is waiting on the program for her right eye surgery and wholeheartedly believes she will have her eyesight restored in both eyes. Krishnavelli will be needing spectacles to help her see as she awaits her second surgery. The spectacles will be provided by the Eiohn Hayes Eyecare Outreach Program in partnership with One Sight.