Ready to go: Director of the Jakarta Eye Center Johan A. Hutauruk (from left to right), founder of Gerakan Matahati Pandji Wisaksana and Gerakan Matahati chairman Wandi S. Brata, symbolically launch the Kick Off '910 Free Cataract Surgery' program at the Jakarta Eye Center in Kedoya, West Jakarta, on Saturday.

Vision, like other human senses, is a gift that should be cherished.

An organization that focuses on making sure needy elderly get free cataract surgery, Gerakan Matahati, has joined forces with Jakarta Eye Center to conduct 910 operations this year to help those who have almost lost their vision to see a better world.

“The free-of-charge operations will kick off today and last until the end of November this year at various hospitals,” Gerakan Matahati chairman Wandi S. Brata told reporters at JEC Hospital in Kedoya, West Jakarta, on Saturday.

Sit back and relax: Patients rest after undergoing a free cataract surgery at Jakarta Eye Center

He said Gerakan Matahati has been providing free cataract operations for people in need since its establishment in 2008. As of March this year, the organization has sponsored 14,825 operations and helped 18,025 poor patients.

According to the Health Ministry, cataracts cause more than 50 percent of blindness and anyone can get them. Furthermore, in tropical countries like Indonesia, cataracts prove to be inevitable.

Director of the Jakarta Eye Center Johan Hutauruuk said one out of 1,000 people a year will get cataracts. He said people will eventually have their vision impaired, but they can take care of the health of their eyes by avoiding as much exposure to direct sunlight as possible and by controlling their blood sugar levels.

“Indonesia’s position as a tropical country results in a tendency of its citizens to get cataracts 15 years earlier than those in sub-tropic areas,’ he said.

Yeni Dwi Lestari from the Indonesian Ophthalmologist Association (Perdami) echoed his statement, adding that besides the aging factor, unprotected exposure to ultraviolet rays can damage our eyes.

“People in other countries usually get cataracts at the age of 60, but in Indonesia they could start much earlier,” she said, adding that the only way to treat it is by surgery.

While too much ultraviolet exposure can harm our eyes, sugar is another threat.

Nasrul Ikhsan, another ophthalmologist, said diabetes could induce a condition of diabetic retinopathy, when high blood sugar levels can damage the retina and eventually threaten sight.

“Blood sugar levels make the cells of the lens migrate. So, our lenses will rapidly degenerate,” he said.

While the words “eye surgery” can sound intimidating, the advancement of technology helps ease jittery minds.

Setiyo Budi Riyanto, the chairman of the cataract service and refractive surgery at JEC, said people should not be afraid to undergo cataract operations. He said today laser technology has enabled bladeless incisions to take out the cataracts.

“The incision is only 2 millimeters in length and our anesthesia is now in the form of eye drops. Still, we strictly implement quality and patient safety,” he said.

The free cataract operation program, which is in line with the country’s journey toward zero blindness by the year 2020, is done in conjunction with Gerakan Matahati’s eight years of advocacy and the 91st birthday of one of its founders, businessman and philanthropist Pandji Wisaksana.

“This is an expression of my gratitude, for at 91 years old I’m still blessed with great physical and mental health. For me, being grateful is not about simply saying it, but doing something about it,” Pandji said.

His book, Mata Hati Sang Pioneer, published in 2007 by Gramedia Pustaka Utama, sparked the idea of making the Mathai movement. Pandji, who has been known for his concern for the visually impaired since he engaged in social work with the Lions Club Indonesia in 1971, made friends with doctors in the Jakarta Eye Center in Menteng who later advise him to start the movement.

So, Gerakan Matahati came to full bloom when it kicked off on Aug. 2, 2008, at Mangga Dua Square shopping mall in North Jakarta. The organization got Rp 114,237,089 million (US$8,680) as start-up funds from the sales of Pandji’s book to pay for the free operations.

Since then, the organization has actively raised awareness about taking extra care of one’s sight, advocating preventive measures to delay the emergence of cataracts and, most of all, helped those in need of free eye operations.

To this day, Gerakan Matahati partners closely with many other organizations, including the Kompas-Gramedia Group, the Guo Ji Bau Mandarin newspaper, Perdami, PT Djamu Sido Muncul and Trisakti University.

For more information about the program, please contact (021) 536-50-110 and 536-50-111 ext. 3511 (Kuny) and 3512 (Michelle) or email to matahati@gramediapublishers.com.

— Photos Courtesy of Gerakan Matahati
— The writer is an intern at The Jakarta Post

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