With all the divisiveness, hatred and violence in the world today, it’s easy to get disillusioned and cynical. When your faith in people is repeatedly tested by those who are so wrapped up in their religion, or politics or ideology that they can no longer feel the bonds of humanity that connect us, it can be profoundly discouraging, even depressing. But then along comes something that gives you a glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe, we’ll all pull together and get through these trying times.

I was hoping that my recent visit to the new Orbis Flying Eye Hospital, which I saw during its inaugural tour of select U.S. cities, would provide just that kind of lift. It did not disappoint.

As soon as I boarded the plane, I began to see why the Flying Eye Hospital is special. It includes a 46-seat classroom, state-of-the-art AV/IT room, patient care and laser treatment room, operating room, sterilization room and a pre- and post-operative care room. This unique marriage of medicine and aviation—two of the most highly regulated industries in the world—allows Orbis to provide hands-on training to local eyecare professionals and convey the know-how to save and restore sight for patients in their own countries. The Orbis team focuses on all areas of preventable blindness, from cataract—the world’s leading cause of avoidable blindness—to refractive error, glaucoma and strabismus, as well as diabetes-related conditions, with a particular emphasis on tackling childhood blindness.

Although the eyecare Orbis provides is crucial to the people it serves, its role as an educational resource for eye doctors is just as important. As Orbis’ global medical director, Dr. Jonathan Lord, explained to me, “Our role is not high-volume surgery. We train people to build sustainable healthcare systems.”

These dedicated folks and the companies that support them are enriching the lives of millions of people, a large number of whom are children. They remind those of us in the vision business that there is plenty we can do to make the world a better place.

Andrew Karp
Group Editor, Lenses and Technology
[email protected]























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