Chinese eye surgeons begin operating on 1,000 Pakistanis

A team of Chinese Eye Surgeons launched the ‘Bright Light Tour’ to Pakistan on Wednesday by starting operations on patients at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) to restore vision to 1,000 people.
The tour was announced by Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao during his visit to Pakistan to mark 60 years of Pak-China friendship. A launch ceremony for the ‘Bright Light Tour Programme’ was held at PIMS which was attended by the Chinsese Deputy Head of Mission to Pakistan Huang Xilian and the Embassy’s Commercial Counsular, Zhou Zhencheng and the Chinese team of eye surgeons as well as top professionals from the medical community.
Speaking on the occasion, Deputy Head of Mission Huang Xilian said, “The ‘Bring Light Tour’ is an important part of our Friendship Year’s celebration. It is a gift from Chinese government to our great neighbour, a symbol of love from Chinese people to Pakistani brothers and sisters and a manifesto of special bonds between our two countries.
The medical team consisting of China’s best ophthalmologists will conduct surgeries in Islamabad and Multan.”
He said the Chinese surgeons came from Beijing’s TongRen Hospital which had a record of 100 percent success in restoring vision in cataract patients, adding he was confident that the ‘Bring Light Tour’ would be one of the highlights in this year’s celebration of China-Pakistan friendship.
Pakistan’s National Blindness Prevention and Control Programme Head Dr Saqlain Gillani said: “Under the programme Chinese surgeons will conduct 1,000 cataract surgeries in Pakistan. As agreed in our discussions with our Chinese counterparts, the surgeries will be performed over a two-year span covering 10 high prevalence districts of Pakistan.
In the first phase 500 surgeries will be performed, 250 each in Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, Islamabad and Nishter Hospital, Multan. Beginning from Wednesday, the Chinese surgeons will operate on cataract patients till the 11th of December.”
PIMS Executive Director Prof Mehmood Jamal said: “‘The Bright Light Tour’ brings a message of hope and health. The gesture of our Chinese friends symbolises their concern for Pakistani brethren and reflects the deep-rooted ties amongst our people that indeed stand taller than the Himalayas.”
He expressed gratitude to the Embassy of China and the Chinese medical team on behalf of the patients, their families and the doctors of PIMS.
Blindness remains a key public health problem in Pakistan. According to the National survey of Blindness and Low Vision 2002-2004, the prevalence of blindness in Pakistan is 1% with 1.5 million vision-impaired people in the country.