Fred Hollows : True Humanitarian

Fred Hollows was a humanitarian in the fullest sense of the term: someone who acknowledged the limits imposed on us by nature but refused to accept the limits we impose on ourselves.

He understood the term "aid" in the only way it makes any sense, as helping people overcome the obstacles that now stop them from standing on their own feet.

When Fred Hollows wanted to aid overseas cataract victims, he didn't make a one-off charity contribution, he didn't organise a Rock Concert and make himself famous, he set about helping the Eritreans and the Nepalese and the Vietnamese to produce their own lenses, without concern for the profit rates of Western companies.

This earned him sneers and worse from those profit-making companies who prefer to see an aging musician talk about "poverty" in sorrowful tones than to see a doctor teaching people to help themselves.

There is profit to be made from poverty - and Fred Hollow's work threatened that profit.
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From 1976 to 1978, his teams screened 100,000 people, 60% of whom were of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander heritage. Because of this programme, the rate of curable blindness among these communities was halved.

His anger at a system which allowed curable blindness in indigenous Australians often meant that Fred was considered short tempered. His early campaigns earned him almost as many enemies as friends and he was often referred to as the 'Wild Colonial Boy' of Australian surgery.

"Having a care and concern for others is the highest of the human qualities." ~ Fred Hollows

By the 1980s, Fred had extended his campaign for treating avoidable eye disease and was soon traveling all over the world. A great believer in people being empowered to help themselves, Fred set up eye clinics in some of the world's poorest countries.

At these clinics he not only treated people suffering from eye diseases, but also taught local doctors how to treat these diseases so they could continue his work.

As word of his work spread, more and more Australians volunteered their time and donated money so Fred could continue to establish his clinics in developing countries around the world. His dream of setting up an eye lens factory in Eritrea became a reality when Australians donated more then $6 million to the cause.

Three out of four people who are blind don't have to be. They are blinded by poverty alone.

By 1989 Fred knew he was dying of cancer and he died at home in the February of 1993, surrounded by his friends, his wife Gabi and their five children.

Some days later, I attended his official state funeral at St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney, but Fred was laid to rest in Bourke, a northern New South Wales town, amongst the red dirt and mulgas.

The town of Bourke symbolises the 'end of the road' in colloquial Australian. The Back o' Bourke is more than a geographic location, it's part of the Australian language, part of the folklore.

Fred first visited Bourke in the early 1970s and his eye team held their first clinic at the showgrounds, later relocating regular weekend clinics to Bourke District Hospital. They were welcomed in the true Bush spirit and provided services to other communities in the district, including Brewarrina, Cobar, Enngonia, Walgett, and Wilcannia. (These vital screening and surgical services are continued today by the Eye Team from the Department of Ophthalmology at the Prince of Wales Hospital in Sydney).

Pretty much everyone in the district knew Fred and had a story about him to tell anyone who would listen. Whether it be about how he treated their eyes, how he swore at them, cajoled them, joked or shared a yarn with them.

Fred Hollows will always be remembered in the Outback.

In 2006, Fred's original gravestone was replaced with a new granite sculpture, created by Austrian sculptor Andreas Buisman and erected with the generous support of friends and the local community.

The Hollows' family invite visitors to touch and feel the rock, to climb on it or sit peacefully and contemplate life.

For them, the polished surface of this new installation is reminiscent of the surface of those small medical marvels, pieces of clinical grade perspex called intraocular lenses. IOLs replace the natural damaged lens of the eye and restore sight to those living with cataract blindness. Factories in Eritrea and Nepal, named after Fred, now manufacture these lenses.

The Cambodian Government awarded The Fred Hollows Foundation with a rare medal of honour, acknowledging the organisation's contribution to preventing unnecessary blindness in the country.

The National Development Medal was presented at the official opening of a new eye clinic in Prey Veng Province in south western Cambodia in early November 2008. The medal has only ever been awarded to a handful of International Non Government Organisations.

10% of my income goes to continue the work of Fred Hollows in treating avoidable blindness and improving indigenous health.

Photo : Khim Rath, who can now see after a successful cataract operation, Kampong Chhnang province, Cambodia.

Blindness is a significant public health issue in Cambodia. Over 160,000 people are blind and an additional 20,000 become blind each year. The main cause of blindness is cataract, which can be treated by a simple 15 minute operation at an average cost of $25 (AUD$35).

According to the World Health Organisation, women account for approximately two-thirds of the world's blind population.

Women are more likely to have cataracts, accounting for between 53% and 72% of people living with cataracts.

Women in developing countries are much less likely to receive cataract surgery at the same rate as men.

Trachoma is more common in women than in men, largely because women and girls are more likely to be infected while caring for young children. Surveys show that 75% of people with advanced trachoma are women.

The disproportionate prevalence of blindness for women is true across all preventable and treatable conditions that cause blindness. Only conditions such as age-related macular degeneration affect men and women at similar age-adjusted rates.

Women with disabilities, such as blindness, are much more vulnerable to social exclusion and abuse

In 1990, the title of Australian of the Year was awarded to Fred Hollows in recognition of his work in treating avoidable blindness in some of the world's poorest communities

Thanks very much for dropping by to read about Fred's work and the Foundation he left behind. Please visit the Fred Hollows Foundation to to find out how just $25 can restore sight.

You're more than welcome to leave a note in the guest book above and, if you're a member of Squidoo, you can also rate this lens :) It's all much appreciated, Susanna

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