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Sustainable prevention of blindness from diabetic retinopathy through prevention and control of diabetes mellitus – LINK partnership experience in Dominica

The Caribbean Diabetic Retinopathy Project (DR Caribbean) is a five-year project that aims to reduce blindness due to diabetic retinopathy (DR) across four Commonwealth countries: Belize, Dominica, Jamaica and St Lucia. The VISION 2020 LINKS Programme at the London School...

Building capacity for diabetic retinopathy services in Malawi

Screening for diabetic retinopathy prevents blindness. There is no systematic screening programme for diabetic eye disease in Malawi and people present when they have lost vision and it is too late for treatment. The aim of the VISION 2020 LINK...

The Diabetic Eye Screening Programme in Tanzania - The VISION 2020 LINK between Dodoma and Belfast

Rahila Bashir, Senior Remote Ophthalmic Research Image Grader, talks to Frank Sandi, Ophthalmologist at the Benjamin Mkapa Hospital (BMH), University of Dodoma in Tanzania and to Tunde Peto at Queen’s University Belfast (QUB) and Belfast Health and Social Care Trust...

A personal reflection: working at the International Centre for Eye Health from 2006–2024

I feel incredibly fortunate to have been working part-time at the International Centre for Eye Health (ICEH) [1] since 2006. Earlier in my career, the responsibilities of work and a growing family made this merely an aspiration, and apart from...

The future of multi-professional working in eye care

How the integration of service improvement technology, and health promotion will allow eye care professionals to overcome current and future challenges. The future of eye care in the UK is at a precipice. Hospital attendances are increasing year on year,...

Ophthalmology research: lessons from the Academic Foundation Programme

The author discusses practical lessons learned during eight months of ophthalmology research as a guide for candidates considering a research themed AFP post, with general tips for anyone undertaking research whilst balancing clinical duties. Ophthalmology is already one of the...

Ophthalmology clinical teaching and research fellowships: a pathway into ophthalmology specialty training

Ophthalmology is known for being one of the most competitive medical specialties in the UK, with 6.8 applicants per post in 2021. In fact, the competition ratio has drastically increased in recent years, rising from 5.73 in 2020 and 3.24...

100 years of insulin

*Joint first authors The centenary of the discovery of insulin is a time to celebrate one of the most significant scientific discoveries of the 20th century. Background Before 1923, Type 1 diabetes mellitus [T1DM] resulted in death from severe ketoacidosis...

Retinoblastoma – the challenges of a rare cancer and the role of international partnerships

Introduction: the global challenge The global burden of retinoblastoma (Rb) is one in 15,000-18,000 live births, which equates to 8000 new cases worldwide each year. The global disparities in Rb outcome represent a paradigm of health inequality worldwide [1]. In...

The ROP Network: a south-south collaboration to improve care for premature babies

Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a disorder of the immature preterm retina and a leading cause of preventable, irreversible blindness in children. There are 15 million preterm births annually, and over 32,000 neonates became blind from ROP in 2010 [1]....

Blinded by an Ofsted inspection

Introduction The Association of Health Professions in Ophthalmology (AHPO) is a charity, whose objectives are to promote the practice, education, training and research in ophthalmology and vision science in the UK. The extraordinary developments in diagnostic equipment and technologies have...

6.6.2020 – a celebration of international partnerships

The date 6.6.2020 was selected as a significant milestone for celebrating the achievements of the VISION LINKS Programme as part of the global ‘VISION 2020: The Right to Sight’ initiative [1]. This virtual full-day seminar included LINK partners in the...