John Miles: Global Sight Solutions

We had a fellow Rotarian speak to us today, John Miles from the Rotary Club of Guildford in District 1145, who is also a trustee of the charity Global Sight Solutions. Global Sight Solutions was originally known as the Guildford Rotary Eye Project but formally adopted its current name in 2018.

Global Sight Solutions runs an avoidable blindness programme aimed at establishing eye hospitals in parts of the world where treatment for eye conditions would not otherwise be readily available. They treat such conditions as cataracts, glaucoma and macular degeneration. This is done with a local Rotary Club in each area, who are responsible for starting and overseeing the project locally. Each hospital is set up as a separate entity with its own body of trustees. Global Sight Solutions helps with funding, advice and practical support.

The eye hospitals are run by local specialists and staff. This is easier to arrange in countries like India, which trains its own eye surgeons, than it is in others. In African countries, in particular, specialist training has to be arranged.

The charity was founded in 1994 and opened the first hospital in 1998. There are now hospitals in a number of countries, including Bangladesh, India, Lebanon and Nigeria. During their latest trip to the Indian subcontinent and Africa, John and his wife Fiona visited a number of local Rotary Clubs to discuss establishing eye hospitals in their areas. As a result they hope that it will be possible to establish at least another 15 eye hospitals in those places.

A rolling slide show was displayed while John was talking. This included photographs of some of the hospitals. The Rotary branding was prominent.

Treatment is provided free to those who cannot afford to pay. Better-off patients can pay for treatment but this does not give them any priority or any other preference over other patients.

Each hospital has its own pharmacy. As well as dispensing the medicines needed by the hospital’s patients, these also provide a pharmacy service for other members of the local population. John commented that the Rotary name was well known and well respected in developing countries, so those using the pharmacies had confidence that what was handed to them was actually the medicine they had been prescribed.

Funding is raised through the hospitals’ paid services, locally and through Global Sight Solutions. John said how much they valued the contributions from Rotary Clubs and urged us to spread the word. The charity’ website has a number of items that can be bought to help with the finances. John and Fiona brought with them a number of small Global Sight Solutions teddy bears for sale.

John did not seem too put off by his discovery on arrival that one of our members, Ajay Sinha, is a retired eye surgeon. Ajay proposed the vote of thanks.