Global Ophthalmology

Ruth Steer | 06/27/2018

This selection of images are from “Visions of Zambia,” an exhibition of portraits by artist Tim Benson in support of Orbis. The project, a collaboration between Orbis and Benson, was conducted to raise awareness of avoidable blindness through sharing the stories of patients at the Kitwe Hospital Eye Annexe in Zambia, Africa. As part of the project, Benson traveled to Zambia to meet patients and health staff trained by Orbis medical volunteers. The resulting oil paintings capturing children and adult patients, parents and carers, as well as traditional healers, are available for purchase with 80 percent of the proceeds going to the support of global Orbis work.

Larry Benjamin, Consultant Ophthalmologist and Orbis Volunteer and Trustee, says: “Tim Benson’s visit to Kitwe Eye Annexe in Zambia, a hospital that is very dear to me and one which I have been heavily involved with, has shone a light on the people and the emotions of those receiving treatment. His beautiful work captures the hopes and fears of patients and their families as they seek help for their vision loss.”

For more information on the project or paintings please contact [email protected]

Alisha was just four months old when she had her first surgery to correct her eyesight. She has undergone treatment for both cataract and squint. Originally, her mother’s family told her not to take Alisha to hospital, for fear that they might remove her daughter’s eye.

This photo is from an Orbis cataract training program in Kingston, Jamaica. The patient was marked to be wheeled back to surgery.

James Lehmann, Focal Point Vision, San Antonio, TX, USA.

These photos by Terry Cooper were taken as part of a VISION 2020 programme on outreach eye clinics in Uganda funded by THET (the Tropical Health and Education Trust). The programme, led by Cooper, consists of a series of training workshops for eye health workers followed by live clinics.

Terry Cooper, London, UK, www.terrycooper.photography