To date, The Ashipti Project has worked primarily to support Tamale Hospital in northern Ghana.  We have raised over £10,000 and have sent several shipments of equipment to the hospital since 2006. 

We would like to thank all those involved in fundraising and the organisations and individuals who have donated much needed equipment.   
 

Operating microscope - November 2007   

In November 2007, The Ashipti Project donated a new operating microscope to the eye clinic at Tamale hospital, worth almost £5,000.  The microscope has since been used by ophthalmologist Dr Seth Wanye to perform hundreds of eye operations in Ghana. 

This microscope is particularly useful as it is portable, meaning the operating theatre can be taken to patients living in the remote villages of the Northern Region.  The vast majority of operations conducted by Dr Wanye are to treat cataracts, which are a leading cause of blindness in Ghana.  

The American organisation, Unite for Sight, has been working in Ghana to cure preventable blindness for many years.  The charity runs outreach programmes in rural Ghana to identify patients with treatable cataracts.  If possible, these patients are brought to the eye clinic to have their operation but in some cases it is simply too far for them to travel.  The new operating microscope has allowed Dr Wanye to perform operations for such people in their own villages, meaning he can reach a greater number of patients and restore the sight of people who would otherwise have no access to this vital surgery.  Unite for Sight currently funds such surgeries in Ghana, making the operation completely free for patients and ensuring that help reaches those most in need.    

Tonopen, A-scan and general supplies July 2007

In July 2007, some of The Ashipti Project trustees returned to Tamale to deliver equipment donated to the hospital. This included a Tonopen, worth over $3000, which was kindly donated by Reichert inc.  

A tonopen is used to measure the pressure in the eye and helps to diagnose and monitor cases of glaucoma.  If left untreated, glaucoma can damage the nerves in the eye.

Unfortunately, by the time patients develop symptoms, the loss of vision is often permanent.  By measuring the pressure in the eye, glaucoma can be diagnosed and treated in time, preventing loss of sight.  

We were also able to deliver an A-scan, donated by Dr Jon Luck (Bath Hospital) and various general supplies including stethoscopes and blood pressure monitors which were kindly donated by Burgess Road surgery.   An A scan is a useful piece of equipment that helps to measure the length of the eye.  This is helpful for calculating the type of lens needed to replace the damaged lens which is removed in a cataract operation.

November 2006 – Ophthalmic equipment from Dr Spolton

In November 2006 Dr Mike Spolton kindly donated a visual field machine, synoptophore and cautery machine to the project.  These machines are incredibly useful for diagnosing and treating various eye conditions and have been a welcome addition to Tamale Eye clinic.  Funds raised by the Ashipti Project were used to send the equipment to Tamale in 2006.

November 2006 – Eye screening equipment from Welch Allyn   

Shortly after The Ashipti Project was formed, we were able to send our first small shipment to Tamale, thanks to a kind donation from a company called Welch Allyn.  They donated several opthalmoscopes and retinoscopes to the project, which were delivered to Dr Wanye in Tamale by Unite for Sight volunteer Dr Jon Luck. 

Dr Luck is an ophthalmologist from the UK who visited Ghana in 2006 to volunteer his skills performing eye surgery in Tamale hospital.  The ophthalmoscopes he took have since been used to screen thousands of people for eye disease.  Opthalmoscopes are used to examine the back of the eye and can help to diagnose many different conditions.  This video was taken by a Unite for Sight volunteer in 2006 and shows Maggie, a nurse from Tamale eye clinic, using an ophthalmoscope to examine patients in a village outreach programme.  Unfortunately, as is the case for many patients, this gentleman had left it too late to seek help and had irreversible damage to one of his eyes.  Had he had simple antibiotics at an early stage, this may have been prevented.