Aravind Eye Care System (English) - Teaching note

This is the story of an ophthalmology surgeon, who, after having obtained a specialisation in obstetrics, was struck down by rheumatoid arthritis in his thirties. He decided after his illness, to give up his speciality and start training in another medical specialisation, ophthalmology surgery. In his career as a surgeon, he had been in charge of the more demanding management functions in State hospitals, as well as performing surgery. When he retired at 58, he became aware of the need for ophthalmology surgeons to attend to the large number of people requiring eyecare in India. He decided then to create an ophthalmology clinic. The clinical activities had great success. Presently the Aravind system has 5 ophthalmology hospitals. Each of them contains a sector intended to serve free patients, those who have no means of payment, and another sector for paying patients. Altogether, 1,384 people work in the Aravind system, of which 197 are ophthalmology practitioners.