Eye care project to Pakistan is heavily oversubscribed

The trip, financed by Ocuco UK, the practice management and clinical software company, travelled to Aliabad, a small village in Hunza. Dispensing optician Nizam Abdulla, from Abbot Opticians in London formed a team that included four optometrists, an orthopist, and a medical practitioner. The fortnight trip saw 1,300 patients screened, 600 pairs of spectacles prescribed. Unfortunately 3,500 patients were turned away due to time limitations. Ocuco paid for a digital camera, which enabled the team to record patients' medical conditions and also the geographic area. The project, which also includes dental care for those in the region, will continue next year, with the aim of making the Hunza valley medically self-sufficient.