Tiek's Story

DON’T LET CHILDREN LIKE TIEK GO BLIND

Toddler Tiek is a bundle of joy. He is angelic, funny and cheeky. He has stolen his family’s hearts. But at the age of three months, Tiek’s loved ones saw the cloudiness in his eyes and started to worry about his eye health.

As Tiek grew, so did his family’s fear. Tiek couldn’t see clearly and needed to feel his way around their home. He was crawling backwards, not knowing directions. 

In Lao PDR, blind children have a very hard life. They are less likely to go to school, more likely to be left out, and more likely to experience emotional and developmental instability.

Tiek’s parents, Kene and Inthong, were anxious, knowing that this would be their precious son’s difficult future.

The family doesn’t earn very much, and with no eye health services nearby, they felt helpless.

“I couldn’t focus on my work because I was extremely worried about him,” Kene says.

The cloudiness in Tiek’s eyes grew worse with each passing day, threatening to take over completely – until someone like you did something truly life-changing.

Your incredible generosity made it possible for a mobile eye camp to visit Tiek’s village.

BLINDNESS WAS HOLDING TIEK BACK

Every parent looks forward to celebrating their baby’s milestones, but with almost three quarters of a child’s early learning being through vision, Tiek’s mum and dad knew that their baby was already behind in his development.

Tiek’s whole family was hoping for a miracle – and then someone like you did just that by supporting Tiek’s surgery.

THE PEOPLE OF LAO PDR NEED YOUR SUPPORT

The people of Lao PDR face many barriers that prevent them from accessing eye care. Those living in remote districts, women, and ethnic minority groups are especially disadvantaged, and they need your kindness and compassion.

	16,190 PEOPLE NEED URGENT CATARACT SURGERY There’s a significant backlog of people facing long delays who need cataract surgery as soon as possible, and the ongoing pandemic is making matters worse. More than 16,000 people are at risk of preventable blindness, but you can help.
	THERE ARE 4 OPHTHALMOLOGISTS PER 1 MILLION PEOPLE There are seven million people in Lao PDR and 93.4% of the blindness in people aged over 50 there is preventable. With your help, The Foundation can continue to build the local eye health care workforce to give more people easy access to eye health services.
	WE OPERATE IN 11 PROVINCES ACROSS LAO PDR With your support we can reach the most marginalised people living in remote parts of the country and give them the opportunity to get their eyes screened, receive sight-restoring surgery, and access ongoing treatment and care.

YOU CAN GIVE SOMEONE LIKE LITTLE TIEK A BRIGHTER FUTURE

It was someone like you who gave Tiek the chance to have his sight restored before it was too late.

Your support made it possible for Dr Sonchai to receive his training and he is the only ophthalmologist in Bokeo Province. Then your support made it possible for him to visit Tiek’s village for a Fred Hollows Foundation supported mobile eye camp and diagnose him with congenital cataract in both eyes.

Then, thanks to you, Tiek and his family were able to travel to Bokeo Hospital, where Dr Sonchai performed the delicate surgery needed for such a young child, under the age of two.

Hoping for the best, Kene and Inthong looked on while Tiek’s grandmother, Soy, held him still as Dr Sonchai removed Tiek’s patches and examined his eyes.

Tiek’s charming smile said it all, the surgery was successful!

“Now my grandson can go to school and become anything he wants in the future!” Soy says with tears of gratitude in her eyes.

“Now he will see his family and his friends through his beautiful eyes,” Kene joyfully adds.