Determining the National Cataract Surgical Rate in Pakistan.

Purpose: Cataract surgical rate (CSR) (cataract surgeries performed per million population) is an eye health indicator that helps assess the state of eye care services. A survey in 2002 revealed a CSR of 2254. The current survey aimed to establish a new and sustainable development goal compliant baseline for the volume of cataract surgery performed by different service providers in Pakistan at district, provincial, and national levels.

The status of childhood blindness and functional low vision in the Eastern Mediterranean region in 2012.

Childhood blindness and visual impairment (CBVI) are major disabilities that compromise the normal development of children. Health resources and practices to prevent CBVI are suboptimal in most countries in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR). We reviewed the magnitude and the etiologies of childhood visual disabilities based on the estimates using socioeconomic proxy indicators such as gross domestic product (GDP) per capita and <5-year mortality rates.

Status of Ophthalmic Education and the Eye Health Workforce in South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation Countries.

Purpose: This study aimed to assess the capacity for ophthalmic education in the 8 South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries and to determine the need and future projections of eye health professionals in the region.

Design: This was a retrospective study and comprised desk review and Web-based questionnaire.

Methods: Developed in the Asia Pacific region, the Capacity Assessment Tool for SAARC Eye Care Education, a Web-based survey mechanism derived from a 12-point framework, was used to collect data on the number of ophthalmologists and other eye care personnel, training institutions, and capacity for training in each SAARC country.

How to achieve universal coverage of cataract surgical services in developing countries: lessons from systematic reviews of other services.

Purpose: Since the Declaration of Alma Ata, universal coverage has been at the heart of international health. The purpose of this study was to review the evidence on factors and interventions which are effective in promoting coverage and access to cataract and other health services, focusing on developing countries.

Methods: A thorough literature search for systematic reviews was conducted.

The economic burden of blindness in Pakistan: a socio-economic and policy imperative for poverty reduction strategies.

State and nonstate health programs in developing countries are often influenced by priorities that are defined in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). In the wake of recessionary pressures, policy makers in the health sector are often seen to divert significant budgets to some specific health programs and make only token allocations for other health problems that are important but do not fall under the traditional MDG box of health priorities. This paper illustrates the economic argument for investment in one such program: The eye health program and employs a country case study of Pakistan to demonstrate that there are significant economic gains that are being foregone by not addressing the needs of the blind in poverty reduction strategies.

Mapping vulnerability to climate change and its repercussions on human health in Pakistan.

Background: Pakistan is highly vulnerable to climate change due to its geographic location, high dependence on agriculture and water resources, low adaptive capacity of its people, and weak system of emergency preparedness. This paper is the first ever attempt to rank the agro-ecological zones in Pakistan according to their vulnerability to climate change and to identify the potential health repercussions of each manifestation of climate change in the context of Pakistan.

Methods: A climate change vulnerability index is constructed as an un-weighted average of three sub-indices measuring (a) the ecological exposure of each region to climate change, (b) sensitivity of the population to climate change and (c) the adaptive capacity of the population inhabiting a particular region.

Prevalence of non-vision-impairing conditions in a village in Chakwal district, Punjab, Pakistan.

Purpose: To determine the prevalence of non-vision-impairing ocular conditions (NVIC) and estimate the number of primary eye care treatments per 1000 population per month.

Methods: A cross-sectional study in a random sample of 1670 people was done to determine the load of NVIC in a village in Chakwal district.

Results: The prevalence of NVIC was 30.