Dr. Morris Hartstein performing eye exams on people in ethiopia

We Bring Life-Changing Eyecare to Thousands of Ethiopians

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12,739

Mobile eyecare clinic patients

2,154

Sight-restoring cataract surgeries

19

Ethiopian eye doctors trained in Israel

2,336

Pairs of eyeglasses distributed

6,597

Units of medications distributed

OUR MISSION

Operation Ethiopia is a proudly Jewish and Israeli organization whose mission is to bring high-quality eyecare directly to every Ethiopian in need—to Jews and non-Jews alike. We bring life-changing eyecare directly to people in Ethiopia. We meet Ethiopia’s most destitute right where they are with our mobile eyecare clinics, eye surgeries, by empowering Ethiopian ophthalmologists with hands-on subspecialty training, and providing first-aid instruction to villagers.

See our work in action

It all started with a family trip...

We're Dr. Morris Hartstein and Elisa Minsk Hartstein. In 2014, our four teenagers asked us to take them on a volunteer trip to Ethiopia. We were struck by the immense poverty we encountered—malnourishment, lack of clean water or basic hygiene, and limited (if any) access to healthcare.

One person asked Morris, an ophthalmologist, to check a child's eye, and before we knew it, hundreds were lining up asking for help.

We knew right away we had to keep going back to provide this necessary, life-changing care. And with that, Operation Ethiopia was born.

dr. morris hartstein doing an eye exam on an ethiopian patient

Professor Morris Hartstein MD, FACS, is the Founding Director of Operation Ethiopia. He trained at Harvard University and Tufts University and is the Director of Oculoplastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Shamir Medical Center in Zrifin, Israel and a Clinical Associate Professor at Tel Aviv University Medical School.

Learn More About Us

Our Work

bearded man doing eye exam on an ethiopian woman in a headscarf

Mobile Eyecare Clinics

We bring our eyecare clinics directly to Ethiopian villages, providing routine eye exams, glasses on the spot, medications, and referrals and care plans for surgeries as needed.

With our large team of volunteers, we've been able to treat thousands of Ethiopians who otherwise would have no access to this basic medical care.

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What We Stand For

Elisa and Morris Hartstein with two Ethiopian children

Family Beginnings

It all started with a family volunteer trip to Ethiopia, where we witnessed firsthand the level of poverty people live with there. This organization started with our family, and is still family-run.

Group of Operation Ethiopia volunteers in front of a Jewish star

Proudly Israeli

We’re proud representatives of Israel, bringing eye care from Israel to those in need in Ethiopia.

Close up picture of Ethiopian man with cross on forehead

Inclusive

While we are proudly Jewish and Israeli, we treat anyone in need of help—Jews and non-Jews alike. We bring care directly to the Ethiopian people in the poorest villages with the least access to care.

Volunteer doing eye exam on Ethiopian woman

Accessible

With our mobile eye care units, we go directly to our patients, bringing them everything they need right on the spot—from exams to glasses to treatment for the most common eye diseases and more.

Group of volunteers for Operation Ethiopia

Grassroots

We are a primarily volunteer-based organization, and our work is focused, first and foremost, on providing care directly to our patients.

Community Partners

We are true partners with the communities in Ethiopia, working with them to improve their population’s eye health. We also hire locals for a wide range of support, infusing the local economy.

Empowering

We empower these communities to support themselves by providing subspecialty training to their eye doctors in Israel, hands-on training in the field, and first aid training to community members.

Joy

We measure success in joy—the joy we bring to the people of Ethiopia through our work. When we restore people's vision or provide them with much-needed relief from their ailments, we help Ethiopia's most destitute experience joy again.

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