The ‘National Eye Donation Fortnight’ will be organized at AIIMS from August 25 to September 8, 2024.”

CNN Central News & Network–ITDC India Epress/ITDC News Bhopal: “The ‘National Eye Donation Fortnight’ is being observed at AIIMS from August 25 to September 8, 2024. This annual campaign aims to raise awareness about the importance of eye donation and encourages people to pledge to donate their eyes after death. Executive Professor of AIIMS, Prof. Ajay Singh, stated, ‘Eye donation is the greatest gift. It brings light to another person’s life, offering a new vision. At AIIMS, we are committed not only to providing world-class eye care services but also to educating the public about the significance of eye donation. I urge everyone to pledge to donate their eyes and contribute to this life-changing cause. Together, we can make a significant impact in the fight against blindness. AIIMS offers corneal transplant services and has a fully functional eye bank, where advanced procedures like lamellar corneal transplant, which replaces only the affected corneal layer, are performed to achieve better medical outcomes.’

Blindness is a serious public health issue, and according to the World Health Organization (WHO), corneal diseases are one of the leading causes of visual impairment and blindness. Prof. Bhavna Sharma, Head of the Department of Ophthalmology at AIIMS, emphasized the importance of eye donation, stating, ‘We should all come forward to fully support this vital cause of eye donation and spread awareness about it. At AIIMS, we are committed to providing super-specialty eye care services that are accessible and affordable for patients from all walks of life.’ Dr. Sharma also discussed the efforts being made by the department to meet the targets set under the National Program for Control of Blindness & Visual Impairment (NPCB&VI). She said, ‘During the Eye Donation Fortnight, we hope to raise awareness about eye donation and dispel the myths surrounding it, which is the need of the hour.’

At AIIMS, treatments are provided for conditions such as cataracts, childhood eye diseases, trauma, retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), diabetic retinopathy, and complex retinal disorders. Various activities are being organized during the fortnight to promote eye donation, including poster and banner displays on eye donation, health talks, administering eye donation pledges, and eye check-up and eye donation awareness programs in rural areas.”