Eyeworld

3 by Natalie Zundel ASCRS Foundation Development Director Second annual National Sight Week results in more than 300 charitable cataract surgeries EW ASCRS NEWS December 2017 Cornerstone Assistance Network Fort Worth, Texas Dean McGee Eye Institute Oklahoma City Dominion Eye Associates Richmond, Virginia Eye Center of Tennessee Crossville, Tennessee Eye Institute of West Florida Largo, Florida Eye Physicians and Surgeons Millford, Connecticut Eye Surgeons of Atlanta Atlanta Eye Surgeons of Richmond Richmond, Virginia Eyes on America/Atwal Eye Care Buffalo, New York Gailey Eye Clinic Bloomington, Indiana Georgia Eye Institute Hinesville, Georgia Houston Eye Associates Houston I Care San Antonio San Antonio Independent Surgery Center Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin Kansas University Eye Lions Club Kansas City, Kansas Key-Whitman Eye Center Dallas Kirby Eye Center Fort Worth, Texas Ludwick Eye Center Chambersburg, Pennsylvania Minnesota Eye Institute Alexandria, Minnesota Montgomery Eye Specialists Montgomery, Alabama Volume of free surgeries grows by 50% O peration Sight was launched by the ASCRS Foundation 3 years ago to meet the needs of patients living and working in U.S. physicians' own communities. Through Operation Sight, the ASCRS Foundation created a national net- work of volunteer ASCRS members who give their time and expertise to treat needy cataract patients who have no other options. The program has seen an exponential growth in volume, with more than 1,600 free cataract surgeries provided to date. This growth has included the celebration of the 2nd annual Na- tional Sight Week (October 15–21). During the inaugural National Sight Week in 2016, volunteer surgeons provided almost 200 free surgeries to eligible U.S. patients. This year, volunteers treated more than 300. The Operation Sight program serves uninsured patients who could otherwise not afford cataract surgery. Alan Tesney, a patient in Morrow, Georgia, said, "I am eternal- ly grateful for having the procedure. After the first surgery, I was surprised at how well I could see within hours of the procedure. Day by day, my sight drastically improved. I was ready to settle with the results and continue working. Within weeks of healing up, I was contacted about completing the operation on the other eye. I was elated to find out that [Operation Sight] was going to cover my other eye also. I wish I could thank everyone who was involved in returning my sight, even the people who pushed me through the halls in the wheelchair or filed my paperwork." While the Operation Sight program runs year-round, the ASCRS Foundation began the National Sight Week initiative to raise aware- ness and encourage surgeons to join the growing volunteer network. "The ASCRS Foundation's Operation Sight initiative offers a solution for Americans in need by enabling ASCRS member eye sur- geons to perform charitable cataract surgeries in their own communities with administrative and financial support from the ASCRS Founda- tion," said Stephen Lane, MD, co-chair of the ASCRS Foundation. "Together, we're working to end preventable cataract blindness in the United States." The ASCRS Foundation provides the administrative support needed to identify and pre-qualify eligible patients and matches them with local volunteer surgeons. A small financial stipend helps to partially offset the cost of providing care. The ASCRS Foundation would like to thank the following practices and organizations that participated in National Sight Week 2017: Associated Eye Care Stillwater, Minnesota Beach Eye Care Virginia Beach, Virginia Black Eye Associates Salem, Indiana Chesapeake Eye Care & Laser Center Annapolis, Maryland Chu Vision Bloomington, Minnesota Clayton Eye Center Morrow, Georgia continued on page 8 Chesapeake Eye Care surgeon Heather Nesti, MD, with Operation Sight patient Francisco Vargas

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