Dr. G. Venkatswamy—affectionately referred to as Dr. V.—understood what it means to overcome the loss of one's senses. Early in his medical career, Dr. V. developed severe rheumatoid arthritis, but instead of abandoning medicine, he rose to the challenge, earning a degree in ophthalmology and training to perform cataract surgery. Years later, after "retiring" at the age of 58, Dr. V. mortgaged his house and enlisted the help of his brother, his sister, and her husband to found Aravind Eye Hospital, a nonprofit eye care group dedicated to preventing and curing blindness.
Today, Dr. V's family carries on his legacy. Aravind Eye Care System has become the world's largest provider of cataract surgery and comprehensive ophthalmic care—an ever-expanding network of hospitals, clinics, and research facilities that prevents millions of cases of debilitating blindness every year. In recognition of its groundbreaking work providing affordable, world-class eye care to the poor, Aravind has been awarded the 2008 Gates Award for Global Health.
Innovative Approaches
Cataracts account for nearly 50 percent of blindness in the developing world, but medical resources and infrastructure skew toward urban areas that are inaccessible to nearly two-thirds of the population. To address this inequity, Aravind pioneered innovative ways to streamline services; produce low-cost, high-quality products; introduce new technologies; and balance costs across the patient spectrum to ensure that all Aravind patients receive high quality eye care.
Dr. V. designed highly efficient treatment models that allowed doctors to perform a greater number of surgeries, increasing the treatment capacity of the hospitals. Last year alone, Aravind surgeons performed more than a quarter of a million surgeries and handled more than 2.3 million outpatient visits.
To help cut costs, Aravind built its own facilities to manufacture intraocular lenses—integral to cataract surgery—for only $10 (imported lenses cost $200). Now, Aravind produces more than 1 million of these lenses each year and sells the surplus to facilities in India and abroad.
Revenue from paying patients, who choose between varying levels of accommodations, supports the hospital's expansion and care for Aravind's poorer patients. Two-thirds of the outpatient visits and surgeries performed at Aravind are provided to the poor at no cost or highly subsidized rates.
Expanding Reach with Technology
Innovative use of emergent wireless technology has allowed Aravind to take its care one step further—into the rural villages that need it most. Taking advantage of India's technology boom, Aravind has adapted "Wildnet" (Wi-Fi over long distance network) technology for use in rural vision centers where people are screened and referred to hospitals if surgery or further care is deemed necessary. Wildnet allows doctors in central hospitals to consult with clinicians at the vision centers in real time via webcam, making quality eye care accessible to the rural poor who don’t have the time or money to travel to big cities for examinations.
What Matters
Before his death, Dr. V. said, "Being of service to God and humanity means going well beyond the sophistication of the best technology, to the humble demonstration of courtesy and compassion to each patient."1
Aravind's dedicated doctors, nurses, and volunteers, led by Dr. V's younger sister, Dr. Natchiar, and her husband, Dr. Namperumalsamy, continue to live his philosophy today.
1. Source: The Hindu