Asian Eye Institute

completed

The project will establish AEI, which will be the first comprehensive eye care ambulatory center in the Philippines to provide a complete range of services for diagnosis and management of eye diseases. AEI would have state-of-the art facilities and a world-class medical team composed of eight Filipino doctors who underwent training at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, a Harvard University affiliated teaching hospital. In addition to providing clinical services, AEI aims to build a specialized training and research ophthalmology facility that could serve the south east Asia region. AEI also plans to play an active role in the delivery of ophthalmological care to underserved populations. As much as 85% of man''s learning and work processes require the sense of sight. Therefore its conservation, promotion and restoration when temporarily lost, are a key requirement for long term sustainable economic and social development. Bilateral blindness is regarded as a serious public health problem in the Philippines. To address this concern the government developed a national prevention of blindness program in the early 1990s. To some extent this program has been successful in reducing the bilateral blindness rate in the country from 1.07% (in 1987) to 0.70% (1995). AEI will be actively supporting the national program by providing cataract surgery, eye facility development and manpower training.IFC primary role would be to provide long-term financing. Health in the developing world remains a sector where financial institutions are reluctant to invest. By playing a lead role, IFC will demonstrate to others the commercial viability of private investment in innovative healthcare institutions such as AEI, that take on training, research and social responsibilities in addition to providing clinical services.