During the seven days of the “Project Vision”, Prof Dennis SC Lam, Director of JSIEC, and a number of internationally renowned ophthalmologists will provide free treatment for about 200 eye patients from all parts of China. The group of ophthalmologists will select 50 to 100 of the patients for operations on the following diseases:

1. Eye injury of all sorts;
2. Pediatric cataract & glaucoma;
3. Macula: macular hole/epi-retinal membrane/diabetic macular edema;
4. Corneal Diseases: unilateral stem cell deficiency; corneal opacity for grafting;
5. Lens: ectopia lentis; refractory glaucoma; lid and orbital and other difficult cases, etc.

Sponsored by the Li Ka Shing Foundation, “Project Vision” is jointly organized by JSIEC, Shantou University Medical College and the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. It will be held at JSIEC from 21 November 2003 for seven days.

Professor Lam said that ophthalmologists taking part in the activity would treat the patients with the latest innovative medical technologies and help them restore their eyesight.

He said, “ We hope to develop JSIEC into one of the most advanced ophthalmology referral centers in the Mainland, taking referrals from other hospitals all over China and giving new hope to the visually impaired.”

Professor Lam expected an enthusiastic response for the “Project Vision”. As there is a quota for treatment, he reminded eye patients to take note of the selection criteria set out by the JSIEC.

These criteria include: the patients must be suffering from serious eye diseases; a medical report or referral letter from his/her physician must be submitted with the application; younger patients and those suffering from physical disabilities, and financial hardship will be given priority.

“Project Vision” will accept applications from tomorrow until the submission deadline on 11 November. Application forms can be downloaded from the JSIEC website: www.stjec.com, or picked up from the 29 major hospitals and optical clinics around China. For enquiries, please email to projectvision@163.com or fax to 86-0754-8393500.

Completed application forms must be submitted together with the patient’s medical report or referral letter from a doctor and a copy of his/her identity document to the above fax number, or mailed to JSIEC.

To coincide with this event, JSIEC will hold a national Telemedicine Symposium themed “Latest Surgical Treatment for Macular Diseases”. Speakers include Professor Lam and Professor Yasuo Tano from the Osaka University Medical School. The instruction courses will feature demonstrations of optical surgeries by various ophthalmologists on the following topics:

1. Macular translocation;
2. Abc of Vitreo-retina Surgery;
3. ROP management update;
4. Difficult phaco;
5. Surgical management of pediatric cataract;
6. Orbital floor fracture surgery; and
7. Strategies for managing angle-closure glaucoma

The previous seven symposiums have been strongly supported by the Ministries of Education and Public Health, which are also honorary sponsors of the symposium. With representatives from the medical schools of the Stanford University, John Hopkins University and Lund University, the symposium will be significant to the promotion of medical advancement and international exchanges.

Professor Lam said that the symposium and instruction courses were targeted to exchange the latest developments in ophthalmologic treatments and surgeries with optical doctors from Mainland China.

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