Remote ophthalmic care awarded

The LV Prasad Eye Institute and Satyam Computer Services Ltd, India, have received a Consumer Health World Award in recognition of their scheme to provide ophthalmology services remotely to rural Indian villages.

The "tele-ophthalmology" scheme allows doctors and vision technicians from the Eye Institute to assess and diagnose patients remotely, by conducting examinations of their eyelids, conjunctivas, corneas, anterior chambers, irises, pupil reactions and lenses with a virtual slit-lamp, followed by consultation and advice. If necessary, patients can then be referred to secondary eyecare centres for further treatment.

The Consumer Health World Awards acknowledge new products or initiatives that are making a difference in the healthcare industry worldwide, advancing, for example, health promotion or efficiency of healthcare delivery. This year, award recipients were announced at a Health Care Globalization Summit in Arlington, Virginia, US, held earlier this month.