Christian Doctor in India Sees 'Opportunities' from Tsunami
A doctor from a Christian clinic in India sees ‘opportunities’ and ‘good’ that can come from the tsunami.
A doctor from a Christian clinic in India sees the “opportunities” and “good” that can come from the tsunami.
“Believe it or not, many opportunities and much good have come from the tsunami,” said Dr. Thiru Krishnan to Action by Churches Together (ACT).
Krishnan, an optometrist and eye surgeon works at a clinic in Pondicherry run by ADEPT (the Academy of Disaster Management, Education and Training) – a United Evangelical Lutheran Church in India (UELCI), which is a member of the global alliance of churches and related aid agencies Action by Churches Together (ACT) International.
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Following the tsunami, ADEPT expanded the clinic – which provides hypertension and diabetes screening, nutritional education and blindness prevention – to respond to the increase demands for medical and psychosocial needs of villagers.
"I could work many places in this country or in the world but none would be as exciting as working here," he told LWR President, Kathryn Wolford, who was visiting the clinic during a tsunami tour.
"Nowhere could the need be as great as here. Many of the patients at this clinic lost everything to the tsunami – their family members, their homes, their ability to work, their communities and their sense of safety."
Dr. Krishnan introduced a 60-year-old man tsunami survivor, Sevaramun, who had suffered for four years with failing sight. Moreover, he lost his wife and children in the tsunami, who had served as his eyes. Now three weeks after surgery, Krishnan and Sevaramun excitedly demonstrate his restored vision that was previously blocked by cataracts.
According to LWR delegation member, Sevaramun told them that “he had gained something from the Doctor and the ADEPT clinic that he thought he had lost forever – hope.”
"In the face of such great losses, it is our duty to give something back to these people,” Krishnan continued. “I am honored to be able to give even a few of them the gift of sight, clear vision or a future without blindness. I am a very lucky man."
Lutheran World Relief in October went on a two week tour of the Tsunami-affected countries of India and Indonesia and reported that although LWR and partner programs have greatly assisted Tsunami survivors, much work remains for the long-term recovery process.
