News and stories

Zambia Flying Eye Hospital goes virtual

The Flying Eye Hospital should be in Zambia right now, delivering hands-on training to our partners in Lusaka, Kitwe, Ndola, and Chipata. However, like millions of people all over the world it is stuck at home waiting for better times. But that has not stopped our team delivering first-class training to our dedicated partners online.

Dai’s Mother’s Dreams Have Come True

March 17, 2020

For the first nine years of little Dai's life, he suffered with cataracts. What began as a subtle clouding of the lenses in his eyes slowly got worse, and as he grew older, he was able to see less and less of the world around him.

EuroTimes: Step on board the Flying Eye Hospital

March 03, 2020

In March 2020, ESCRS EuroTimes published a piece by Aidan Hanratty, which details the experiences of a number of Orbis volunteers on board our Flying Eye Hospital. Read the article below to hear first-hand from the medical staff who give up their time to fight avoidable blindness around the world.

Blindness is a gender issue with 90 million women not having access to quality eye care

Four Reasons Blindness is a Gender Issue

February 27, 2020

55% of people who are visually impaired are women. Across the world, 90 million women don’t have access to life-changing eye care. So why this disparity between men and women’s access to eye care? Below, we list some of the causes…

Fighting avoidable blindness at the London Marathon 2020

February 26, 2020

On Sunday 26th April, Konstantin Schmahl will take to the streets of the capital to run the 2020 London Marathon for Orbis UK. We caught up with Konstantin to see what motivated him to run the Marathon for Orbis, and to find out how his training is going.

Paediatric patient Ismail from Bangladesh looking through his glasses

DAI'S WORLD WAS A BLUR — UNTIL NOW

February 24, 2020

Imagine that you are nine years old. All you want is to spend your days playing with friends outside, riding your bike and exploring your neighborhood. But the world is a strange, dangerous place … because you were born with cataracts. When you can’t see clearly, even walking out your front door is scary.

From the archive: The husband and wife who traveled the world to save sight

February 13, 2020

This Valentine's Day, we're championing the work of the Kulvichit family. This husband and wife duo met whilst working on board Orbis’s Flying Eye Hospital. They went on to spend 16 months with Orbis travelling throughout Asia and Eastern Europe, saving sight and forging lasting relationships with the Orbis crew and local eye health professionals.

India: Vaishnavi can smile again now she can see

February 05, 2020

When Vaishnavi started to lose her sight to a cataract, her father feared she would struggle with her education. However, all thanks to a new paediatric eye care project set up at our partner hospital in India's poorest state, our expert volunteers were able to remove her cataract while giving local doctors the opportunity to learn new skills.

Orbis Uk Ethiopia C Geoff Oliver Bugbee Integrated Eye Care Worker Tsehay And Asegedech Tt Patient

HELPING WOMEN FIGHT TRACHOMA IN ETHIOPIA

February 01, 2020

We recently celebrated our 20th anniversary working in Ethiopia. For the past two decades, we've been part of the international consortium leading the global effort to eliminate blinding trachoma, an infectious disease that disproportionately affects women.