Dear HIFA colleagues,
Q1. What is the burden of cataract worldwide and in different countries?
Cataract (clouding of the eye lens) is a leading cause of blindness, especially among older people in low- and middle-income countries. Access to a short, simple cataract surgery restores sight.
However, 1 in 2 people globally who need cataract surgery don’t have access to this surgery. (WHO).
As a medical student, during the short rotation in the ophthalmology posting, I observed and sometimes assisted in cataract surgery camps in rural health facilities. Later, during my public health experience, it was surprising to learn that although cataract is such a common cause of blindness among the older population and easily treatable with a life-changing short surgical procedure, it is not accessible to everyone in LMICs. There may be several organisations addressing ‘Cataract Surgery’, but it is great to see that the ‘HelpMeSee’ organisation with HIFA has taken the lead to explore communities’ experiences on the ground regarding the challenges and solutions to prevent blindness from cataract.
Best wishes
Dr. Meena Nathan Cherian, MBBS, MD (Anaesthesia)
(Former WHO Lead Emergency and Essential Surgical Care Program, Geneva, Switzerland).
Director, Global Health New Challenges: Geneva Foundation for Medical Education & Research, Switzerland. <http://www.gfmer.ch/surgery/cancer.htm> www.gfmer.ch/surgery/cancer.htm (NSA-WHO)
Senior Advisor Global Action International Society of Geriatric Oncology Permanent Committees - SIOG <https://siog.org/about-us/governance/leadership/permanent-committees/>
Senior Advisor, International College of Surgeons-Global Affairs. <https://icsglobal.org/> https://icsglobal.org/ (NSA-WHO)
Adjunct Prof.The Chinese University of Hong Kong,Shenzhen,China. <https://med.cuhk.edu.cn/en/teacher/371> https://med.cuhk.edu.cn/en/teacher/371
WHO-HIFA Essential Health Services; mHEALTH-INNOVATE. <http://www.hifa.org/> www.hifa.org (NSA-WHO).
Geneva, Switzerland. <mailto:+41%20763837253> +41 763837253(m); <mailto:cherianm15@gmail.com> cherianm15@gmail.com
HIFA profile: Dr Meena Nathan Cherian was a professor of anaesthesiology from Christian Medical College Hospital, Vellore, India. She trained, worked, and taught in several countries, USA (Johns Hopkins Hospital), Southeast Asia and Africa. She worked at the World Health Organization Headquarters, Geneva, Switzerland, as the Emergency and Essential Surgical Care Program Lead where she created the ‘surgical care’ program resulting in the first World Health Assembly Resolution on ‘Emergency and Essential Surgical Care and Anaesthesia in the context of Universal Health Coverage’. Currently she works as the Director, Global Health New Challenges program, Geneva Foundation for Medical Education and Research, Geneva, Switzerland; Adjunct Prof. The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, China; Senior Advisor, Global Action, International Society of Geriatric Oncology, Switzerland; Member of the WHO-HIFA Working Group on Essential Health Services and COVID-19; and HIFA mHEALTH-INNOVATE Working Group. She is a member of the HIFA Steering Group. https://www.hifa.org/support/members/meena and Spotlight working group on Patient Safety and NCDs. cherianm15 AT gmail.com