Representatives of the "Free Your Eyes" Foundation hand over gifts to the elderly in Kim Bình Commune of Tuyên Quang Province. — Photos courtesy of the hospital

TUYÊN QUANG — Đông Đô Hospital, in collaboration with Nhân Dân (People) Newspaper and the Free Your Eyes Foundation, organised a humanitarian programme to provide free medical screenings and medication to residents in the northern mountainous province of Tuyên Quang on Friday.

The humanitarian programme, entitled Million Bright Eyes, aims to bring high-quality eye care services to ethnic minority residents and elderly individuals facing economic hardship in the highland commune of Kim Bình of Tuyên Quang.

The initiative aims to address healthcare barriers and common ophthalmic conditions that significantly impact the lives of people in remote areas, such as cataracts and glaucoma.

Kim Bình is a highland commune in Tuyên Quang, characterised by rugged, fragmented terrain, significant geographical isolation, and a high rate of poverty.

For residents, particularly the elderly and individuals belonging to social policy beneficiary groups, accessing specialised medical services, especially in the field of ophthalmology, remains fraught with obstacles.

A medical team examines elderly residents in Kim Binh Commune, Tuyen Quang Province. — Photos courtesy of the hospital

To address healthcare barriers and common ophthalmic conditions among the elderly, the medical team navigated challenging mountain passes, bringing advanced diagnostic equipment directly to the local community. The programme provides eye screenings, consultations, and treatment for eye conditions, as well as free medication, to the local population.

During the outreach, the medical team provided essential care to nearly 300 local residents and facilitated vision-restoring surgeries in Hà Nội for over 100 individuals, with all costs covered by the Free Your Eyes Foundation.

Đỗ Hoài Thu, of the foundation, said: “In remote areas, where the journey to a hospital is long, many people simply resign themselves to living with blurred vision, as if looking through a thick fog, due to financial constraints and the difficulty of travel.

"We choose to go directly to these communities not merely to distribute medication or provide surgery appointment slips, but to remove the barrier of cost and bring modern medical technology to restore both sight and hope to these individuals.”

A representative from the Kim Bình Commune People’s Committee remarked that this programme carries profound humanitarian significance for the local community.

"Through close coordination in both professional and organisational aspects, nearly 300 elderly individuals, households living in poverty and members of ethnic minority groups in Kim Bình have been able to access high-quality medical services in a safe and equitable manner.”

An eye doctor examines an elderly person in Kim Bình Commune, Tuyen Quang Province. — Photos courtesy of the hospital

This humanitarian initiative is part of Đông Đô Hospital’s series of social welfare events spanning nine provinces and cities, aimed at advancing public health and restoring vision to those in need across the country.

During the period 2022-26, the community healthcare outreach network of Đông Đô Hospital expanded across nine provinces and cities nationwide, including Hà Nội, Thái Nguyên, Bắc Kạn, Lào Cai, Ninh Bình, Hải Phòng, Sơn La, Điện Biên, and Tuyên Quang.

Since the first quarter of 2025, Đông Đô Hospital, in collaboration with the Free Your Eyes Foundation, has provided free surgeries to a total of 1,314 patients in difficult circumstances across the country. This includes 1,019 phacoemulsification (Phaco) surgeries and 259 intermediate-level surgical procedures to definitively treat complex ocular lesions and conditions. — VNS