Free Conference Nov. 6 on Eye Care in Developing Countries
| LITTLE ROCK – Providing needy patients in developing countries low-cost, innovative eye care will be the focus of the first International Eye Care Conference to be held at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS).
The public is invited to attend the free event from 8 a.m. to noon Nov. 6 on the 12th floor of the Jackson T. Stephens Spine and Neurosciences Institute on the UAMS campus. Free parking is provided in the Parking 3 deck next to the Stephens Spine building.
“This is an important event as not everyone in the world enjoys the luxuries of the top-notch eye care that is provided in this country,” said Larry Boyd Nutt, R.N., the organizer of the event, who has spent numerous care missions in developing countries. “The goal is to show the importance of these outreach efforts and get more people involved in giving their time and expertise.”
Two renowned international eye experts will be the keynote speakers to lead the event, including Geoff Tabin, M.D., and Larry Schwab, M.D.
Tabin founded the Himalayan Cataract Project in Nepal in 1995 to provide cataract surgery and other high-quality, low-cost eye care to people in unserved areas who are blinded by cataracts. The Himalayan Cataract Project has become a leader in international health care innovation, based on its unrivaled model for eye care for the developing world.
Schwab, an ophthalmologist who has specialized in tropical medicine, has conducted eye care research in Asia and Africa and travels as a consultant, lecturer and practitioner. His book, “Eye Care in the Developing Nations,” is the eye health worker’s guide to delivering services to low-resource populations.
Guests are asked contact Anna Latta at (501) 526-6000, ext. 2600 or by e-mail at AMLatta@uams.edu to reserve a seat.
UAMS is the state’s only comprehensive academic health center, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Related Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; a 540,000-square-foot hospital; a statewide network of regional centers; and six institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, the Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, the Myeloma Institute for Research and Therapy, the Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, the Psychiatric Research Institute and the Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging. UAMS has 2,836 students and 761 medical residents. It is the state’s largest public employer with more than 10,000 employees, including nearly 1,150 physicians who provide medical care to patients at UAMS, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the VA Medical Center and UAMS’ Area Health Education Centers throughout the state. Visit www.uams.edu or uamshealth.com.