MSH-Peru’s “¡Qué bien te veo Perú!” improves the lives of thousands of poor Peruvians in Puno and Lima

More than 1,800 Peruvians have benefited from “¡Qué bien te veo Perú!” – an MSH-Peru program that offers free reading glasses and sunglasses to people with limited resources improve their quality of life, help them re-enter the labor market, and prevent eye diseases.

In July and August 2018, MSH-Peru visited the Puno region to deliver spectacles in 16 communities in the province of Chucuito. The goal was to deliver 4,000 pairs of reading glasses to people over 40 who have trouble seeing up close.

This project was made possible by the generous support of RestoringVision, a nonprofit dedicated to distributing new reading glasses to people in need. Founded in 2003, RestoringVision has built a network of more than 1,400 partners that have collectively served more than 10 million people in 127 countries.

“Many years ago I stopped reading, but today I will read again,” said Peregrino Mamani Peralta, 82, who lives in the community of Sutuca Urinsaya in the Province of Lampa, Puno, and suffers from presbyopia. Peregrino was an avid reader but when his vision deteriorated he could no longer enjoy this hobby. Now that he has spectacles, he can read again.

The loss of close eyesight tends to afflict people over 40, and it gradually affects their quality of life, as it impairs their ability to perform activities such as reading, writing, or doing manual work. “This deficiency is worsened by factors such as pollution, poor nutrition, exposure to sunlight or electrical appliances without protection,” said Dr. Edgar Medina, Executive Director of MSH-Peru. “Currently, it is a public health problem.”

“Also, sunglasses are necessary because our country has one of the highest rates of solar radiation in the world. Eye protection is vital to prevent diseases such as cataracts and pterygium. That is why at MSH-Peru we are carrying out this program so that people can protect their eyes with sunglasses that meet all the requirements to guarantee their eye health,” added Dr. Medina.

MSH-Peru was founded in 2014 as an affiliate of Management Sciences for Health, Inc., as part of our commitment to building strong, sustainable, and locally led health systems and helping countries on their path to self-reliance.

Watch a video of the program in action.

To learn more about “¡Qué bien te veo Perú!” (in Spanish) visit: www.mshperu.org.