Lending a vision

A doctor in Delhi provides free eye treatment to the underprivileged

After chucking his cushy government job at a prestigious Medical college in New Delhi, Dr Sushil Chowdhary began visiting slums and nearby rural areas. He picked up those who had eye-problems but no money to pay for the treatment.

He brought these hapless people to his home where he not only treated them, but also provided free board and lodging.

Soon his house became a virtual hospital with eye patients milling around in his drawing room, bedroom and what have you. The rush of patients, which began as a trickle, was soon a flood and a proper hospital had to be established.

After 10 years of practising out of his residence, Dr Chowdhary finally managed to open the ICARE Charitable Eye Hospital in 1993. The hospital is located in Noida, just outside Delhi.

It is large, spacious and boasts all the modern equipment and technology. It has the distinction of being the only hospital in the world which provides free Intra-Ocular Lens (IOL) implantation's to the poor and the elderly.

Over 90 per cent of the patients treated at ICARE are treated for free. The 10 per cent patients, who can afford to pay, provide funds for the treatment of the poor.

But the major bulk of the funds come through donations, notably from Helpage India an NGO (non-governmental organisation).

Within a short span of time Dr Chowdhary has been able to establish his eye hospital as one of the best in terms of service, treatment and credibility. It is no wonder that ICARE is usually the first choice when it comes to complicated operations such as the eye-transplants.