A mother’s struggle
For three years, Lien has lived with the frustration and heartbreak of blindness. The 38-year-old mother of two from Oudomxay, Laos, has been unable to work or even recognise the faces of those she loves.
Her greatest fear is for her youngest child, two-year-old Bountai. Their home sits just steps away from a busy highway where trucks thunder past.
“It’s difficult. Sometimes I’m looking for him inside and outside and he’s right here,” she said. “When he strays near the road, the neighbour shouts at me.”
With the family already struggling to survive, Lien’s daughter Aomphai, just 14, had no choice but to leave school. She works long days on a banana plantation before coming home to cook and care for her brother.
Lien’s blindness has left her feeling overwhelmed. “I feel frustrated. I want to do things for my children but I cannot do it. I am depressed, angry. I want the best for myself and my family but I cannot do the best for them.”
Through it all, she has clung to one hope: “If my eyesight is good, I want my daughter to go back to school.”
The chance to see again
Thanks to caring supporters, Lien attended an outreach eye camp run by The Fred Hollows Foundation. Dr Senglar Laosern, a surgeon whose training was supported by The Foundation, performed cataract surgery on both of Lien’s eyes. When the bandages were removed, she could see her children’s faces for the first time in years.
Her daughter Aomphai shared her relief: “I am excited for my mum’s surgery because I want to see my mother go back to what she was before.”
Lien’s story is just one example. Across Laos, thousands of families are still waiting for cataract surgery. Your gift today can help end the wait.
The wait for life-changing cataract surgery
Thousands in Laos wait, hoping to see again.
More than 16,000 people in Laos are waiting for cataract surgery
There are only 4 ophthalmologists per million people in Laos, leaving families with little or no access to eye care.
Women make up 70% of the cataract backlog, yet they are the least likely to receive treatment.
Training the next generation of eye health leaders
Your support doesn’t just restore sight today, it builds lasting change in communities across Laos.
Dr Senglar Laosern is one of the few female ophthalmologists in Oudomxay, northern Laos. Every year, she leaves her family behind to travel to remote villages and restore sight for people who cannot access treatment.
Dr Senglar discovered her passion for eye health after receiving training through The Fred Hollows Foundation. She went on to specialise in ophthalmology, completing her residency in Thailand and returning to serve at Oudomxay Eye Hospital. Today, Dr Senglar travels to remote villages, screening patients and performing cataract surgeries through mobile eye camps so even the most isolated communities can access care.
Your kindness makes this possible. The Foundation equips surgeons like Dr Senglar with the skills, equipment, and resources needed to deliver life-changing care.
Making Fred’s vision a reality
"It’s obscene to let people go blind when they simply don’t have to." Fred dreamed of a world without avoidable blindness—and thanks to you, his vision lives on.
Thanks to kind people like you, thousands of lives in Laos have changed. Just last year we:
- Screened 40,641 people
- Carried out 13,026 eye operations & treatments
- Performed 3,458 cataract surgeries
- Distributed 7,236 pairs of glasses
- Trained 1,315 local eye health workers
- Equipped or upgraded 380 facilities
Behind every statistic is a life transformed thanks to compassionate people like you.
