Eye surgeon travels 8,000 miles to work

Alec Harden, honorary consultant at Sussex Eye Hospital, will travel the 8,000 miles to the Falkland Islands next month to perform postoperative checks on patients who had cataract surgery in February. He follows the work of fellow consultant ophthalmic surgeon Paul Rosen from Oxford Eye Hospital, who helped the South Atlantic territory eye service earlier this year. There is no resident qualified optometrist on the Islands. A UK practitioner visits at intervals of around 12 months, otherwise eye tests are carried out by the Falklands' small team of doctors. Mr Harden will also be treating islanders requiring laser treatment during his 20-day stay in the territory, using a portable EPIC Nd:YAG laser, loaned by Coherent UK. Dr Richard Davies, who works for the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital in Stanley, the territory's capital, thanked Cambridgeshire-based Coherent for the company's generosity. 'The laser will mean that patients can have this simple procedure here in the Islands rather than having to travel to the UK. 'The Falkland Islands already have a comprehensive medical service, wholly funded by the Falkland Islands Government, and it is our long-term aim to build up our ophthalmic services.' - Want to get involved? Contact the Falkland Islands Government on 020 7222 2542.