Orbis International Announces New Support from the David & Molly Pyott Foundation to Strengthen Eye Care in Zambia

The generous $4 million donation will bring care to more people in the country, which faces a shortage of trained eye care professionals

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Orbis International

Mar 14, 2022, 07:57 ET

NEW YORK, March 14, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, eye care nonprofit Orbis is honored to announce that the David & Molly Pyott Foundation has committed $4 million to support the continuation of critical work to strengthen access to eye care in Zambia over the coming three years.

The new funding will build on progress Orbis already made in Zambia between 2019 and 2021 through earlier support from the Pyott Foundation. In this next stage of the work, Orbis will focus on:

Zambian triplets Shakaina, Mildith, and Stephania grew up hypersensitive to light, so their mother took them to an Orbis-supported hospital, where they were diagnosed with strabismus. Thanks to the Pyotts, more children like these sisters will receive the sight-saving care they need and be able to finish their schooling. Photo credit: Jason J Mulikita/Orbis

increasing the number of skilled ophthalmologists and other eye care professionals at all levels of care – from community health centers to hospitals;
boosting demand for eye health services through community outreach and education;
growing investment in primary eye care so that more people can access care closer to home and benefit from early diagnosis and treatment;
providing equipment, supplies, and personal protective equipment (PPE); and
continuing to strengthen the country's eye care system and to advocate for increased funding for eye care in public health budgets.

"Restoring sight transforms lives. Teaching and educating ophthalmologists is one of the major funding goals of our foundation because enhanced skills for ophthalmologists and eye health workers enable enduring capacity for improved eye care," said David and Molly Pyott. "We're proud to support Orbis's important work in Zambia. The Orbis team accomplished a great deal in the first three years of this project, and we look forward to supporting them as they expand their impact even further in the years ahead."

Eye Care in Zambia
Up to 4.4 percent of Zambia's population is estimated to be blind. Most of the major causes of blindness in the country – like cataract (53.2%), glaucoma (19.0%), and trachoma (5.7%) – are treatable or preventable through quality eye care, but there are not enough trained eye care professionals to meet those needs. Zambia has only 33 ophthalmologists and 186 other eye health personnel countrywide, with numbers varying widely between provinces.

At the community and primary care level, the lack of clinical staff properly trained for eye health screening and treatment, and community health workers to identify and refer those seeking care, create an additional challenge in eye health services. Patients have difficulty accessing care because the distance to health centers can be overwhelming, while misinformation abounds due to a lack of knowledge about eye health and the availability of eye care services and treatment.

Achievements to Date
The 2019–2021 funding from the Pyott Foundation went toward Orbis's work to strengthen eye health capacity and care in Lusaka Province. Orbis provided significant support to University Teaching Hospital (UTH)-Eye Hospital. Located in the capital city, UTH is a major hospital facility in the country that is now known as a national center of excellence. Orbis strengthened UTH's residency training program, graduating four new (now practicing) ophthalmologists and supporting the quality training of 11 more at UTH.

Orbis supported a one-year fellowship for Dr. Ziporrah Phiri, who was already providing high-quality care to those who needed it and is now providing leadership and mentorship to the next generation of ophthalmologists at UTH.

As part of strengthening the residency program at UTH, Orbis established a post-graduate resource center, which includes a wet lab where residents can hone their surgical skills in a risk-free environment.

Achievements also included providing surgical outreach programs in seven districts, 9,845 patient screenings, 462 surgeries, diagnostic equipment for five district and six primary-level hospitals, and eye care training to 56 primary health care nurses.

"We are grateful for the David & Molly Pyott Foundation's continued support," says Lucia Nadaf, Country Director for Orbis Zambia. "Investing in strengthening eye care systems and training eye care professionals is the most important step we can take to ensure that no one in Zambia loses their sight to avoidable causes."

Orbis has partnered with the Zambian Ministry of Health since 2010 and established a Zambia branch office in 2017.

About Orbis
Orbis is a leading global non-governmental organization that has been a pioneer in the prevention and treatment of avoidable blindness for four decades. Orbis transforms lives by delivering the skills, resources and knowledge needed to deliver accessible quality eye care. Working in collaboration with local partners, including hospitals, universities, government agencies and ministries of health, Orbis provides hands-on ophthalmology training, strengthens healthcare infrastructure and advocates for the prioritization of eye health on public health agendas. Orbis operates the world's only Flying Eye Hospital, a fully accredited ophthalmic teaching hospital on board an MD-10 aircraft, and an award-winning telemedicine platform, Cybersight. For the past ten consecutive years, Orbis has achieved Charity Navigator's coveted four-star rating for demonstrating strong financial health and commitment to accountability and transparency, placing Orbis in the top 3% of U.S. charities. In 2021, Orbis earned GuideStar's platinum Seal of Transparency. To learn more, please visit orbis.org.

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SOURCE Orbis International