Orbis and partners launch BOOST app

BOOST (Better Operative Outcomes Software Tool) is a simple, free and easy-to-use app designed to help monitor and improve cataract surgical outcomes.

Developed in partnership with Fred Hollows, Sightsavers, The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, The International Council of Ophthalmology and Standard Chartered's Seeing is Believing project, it takes eye care professionals through a step-by-step process to measure and analyse results by providing access to data in similar cases and making suggestions to correct issues and identify risks.

Un-operated cataract remains the world’s leading cause of vision loss, accounting for around 35% of global blindness. Even when there is a surgical intervention, follow-up consultation rates are low due to poor transport links and the great distances patients are required to travel to visit hospital. It is therefore often difficult to know whether the surgery has been a success. 

BOOST allows surgeons to help measure and improve quality even when patients do not return, by analysing results the day after surgery then benchmarking results against other users around the world. It can then identify cases where chances of success are low immediately after surgery, and also suggests strategies to improve surgical quality where results are poor.

Find out more by visiting BOOST's website.

We pride ourselves on using the latest technology to help reach more people and improve the quality of our training. Over the last 25 years, the prevalence of avoidable blindness has dropped from 4.58% in the 1990s to 3.37% in 2015.

However, an ageing global population and the steady rise in diabetes are contributing factors to the fact global blindness is set to triple by 2050. Using the latest technological advancements to act fast and prevent avoidable blindness is one of the ways we can help reverse this trend. 

Here are some of the other ways we're using technology to help reach more people than ever before. 

Cybersight

Cybersight is our award-winning telemedicine platform. Through Cybersight, expert volunteers teach and support eye care teams around the world using the latest advancements in internet and mobile technologies. Cybersight increases our ability to provide training and support to medical professionals all around the world. With Cybersight, we can make an impact in places where a physical presence simply isn't possible due to cost, logistics or security.

Find out more

Flying Eye Hospital 

The Flying Eye Hospital is not only packed with the latest medical equipment, it has some of the very latest training facilities, too. The entire plane is linked up through an advanced audio visual system, meaning those in the classroom can watch surgeries happening in the operating theatre live in 3D – making it as close to the real thing as looking down the microscope yourself.

Find out more

Simulation Centre

The simulation centre on board the Flying Eye Hospital allows local eye teams to learn complex skills in a controlled environment before operating on patients. It breaks down a complex surgery into smaller parts, allowing local doctors to focus on a certain skill – something you can’t do with a human eye.

REACHsoft

As part of our REACH model (Refractive Error Among Children) we developed REACHsoft. REACHSoft supports every step of the program: developing the school database, scheduling planning and delivering services, collecting data (primary screening, detailed examination, spectacle prescription and dispensing, referral management) as well as monitoring progress and generating reports to aid management of the programme.