NINE-YEAR-OLD Sophia Kerr was in a virtual classroom last September 20 when all of a sudden she called out to her dad saying that she could not see anything. She asked him to put on the light, thinking that perhaps the place had gotten dark, but this did not help.

Her father, Oliver Kerr, opened the front door of their house to see if this might bring in some more light, but this too made no difference. Instantly, he became worried and very scared because he knew his own problem with retinal detachment.

To his horror, it was confirmed by doctors that Sophia, a pupil of St. Gabriel’s Primary, now has the same problem in both of her eyes. Oliver decided to get his seven-year-old son checked at the same time and realised that the boy also will have to go for surgery soon although he is seeing fine at the moment.

Oliver became totally blind when he was eight years old but by the time he was about to receive help at 14, the condition had already deteriorated to the point where surgery in the United States did not work to restore his sight.

He is hoping though that quick action this time might save his son and daughter. The Ministry of Health has undertaken to pay for the girl’s surgery in Trinidad and they should be flying out later this week or early next week.

The family is appealing to corporate Guyana and to all who may be able to offer help to assist with their airfares, accommodation, ground transportation, meals and other expenses while they are in Trinidad.

“We’re working with it and keeping hope and faith that when we go to Trinidad surgery will come out successful. We don’t know how long she will stay there and how much we’ll have to spend on hotel and food and all those things. It will be challenging,” Oliver told the Guyana Chronicle on Sunday.

Reflecting on his thoughts when he first heard his daughter cannot see, he shared: “When I got the news, I broke down and was very emotional. I know I already have my challenges, but they’re so young. Wanting that for them (his children) was a ‘no no’ to be honest.”

“You can deal with every other situation but an eye problem is always more technical and difficult. I would really appreciate help from others, but at the same time I want to urge parents to test their children eyes regularly,” the father said.

He was quite surprised at how his daughter ended up because he said he was strict about getting her eyes checked regularly. Sophia is in good spirits but she breaks down every now and then. “We are trying to gaff her out of it when that happens,” Oliver said.

His son will do his surgery right here in Georgetown due to the fact that his situation is not as urgent as his sister.

According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), a detached retina is when the retina lifts away from the back of the eye. “The retina does not work when it is detached, making vision blurry. A detached retina is a serious problem. An ophthalmologist needs to check it out right away, or you could lose sight in that eye,” the AAO stated.