The SOS Medical Teams conduct a full Vision Clinic, Cataract Surgeries and Pterygium Removal Procedures close to where the impoverished indigenous Maya live.

Medical week (Week 1) is fast and furious, but extremely rewarding. We setup an eye clinic in the community and patients get eye care comparable to a local optometrist in the US.

Patients go through eleven (11) stations while in the clinic, including an overall medical exam, basic and in depth eye exams by optometrist and medical assistants, and are fitted for prescription glasses, if needed. The clinic is sometimes open late to serve as many as possible while we are there and we end up working hard and long hours. We gain strength every moment from the beauty in the people we meet.

We may not be able to communicate verbally (English-Spanish-Quiché), but our team gets by with a few translators and mainly our hugs, our smiles and, most of all, our presence. We consistently hear from missionary veterans, how this one week has made such a major impact on their lives.

Seeing an elderly person put on a pair of glasses and be able read their Bible again, is priceless. Witnessing a young father, see his daughter for the first time is without a doubt, very emotional.

The Surgical Week (Week 2) cataract surgeries and pterygium removal procedures are performed on the patients referred from the Clinic Week.