Tag: Aravind Eye Care System

I Co-Founded Seva in 1978. This month, I retired.

Posted on by Dr. Suzanne Gilbert
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Photo: Suzanne Gilbert conducting the Nepal Blindness Survey in 1980.

Seeing the Possible in the Impossible 

My name is Suzanne Gilbert. For the last 45 years, I’ve had the most rewarding job in the world, with the most remarkable  people, at the most resilient organization: the Seva Foundation.

I’ve been with Seva…well, before it was even called Seva! Over the years, I’ve worn many hats, from Co-Founder to volunteer to Executive Director, Program Director, and in recent years as Senior Director of Research. This month, I’ll be retiring from the organization.

As I wind down these last few weeks, I’ve dug through the archives, recalling touching Seva stories and the people behind them. Seva’s stellar Communications Team asked if I’d share some of my journey with you. 

What did five decades in public health teach me? Well, beyond dancing back-up for Wavy Gravy (true story!),  it really boils down to this: learning how to see the possible in the impossible. 

In the late 70s, when we first told people our aim to eliminate avoidable blindness, they thought we were nuts. “You can’t do it, that’s not going to happen, is that even a problem?” Some just asked “how?” And to be honest, we hadn’t gotten that far in our plan yet. We just had this vision, first steps, kept going, and attracted colleagues who shared our same goal.

Building and scaling  self-sustaining eye care programs worldwide is no small feat. What’s stood resolute across five decades is Seva’s firm commitment to compassion, science and service – individually great, but combined? Potent to create lasting change. Today, Seva has grown into a leading authority in public health, tens of thousands of supporters strong, and 57 million people served across over 20 countries.

I’m heartened with all we’ve achieved together – but it’s behind the scenes where some of my favorite memories are, and where the “Seva magic” often happens: talks late into the night to truly hear each other, experiencing the ground realities of partners around the world, and the unexpected surprises along the way (turns out there’s a lot of them in public health!). Hope you enjoy these few memories.

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Start-ups aren’t the only ones disrupting old patterns …

Posted on by Seva Foundation
Photo: Pristine 5.0 Retinal Camera (formerly Vistaro) in action.

When you think of “disruptive and revolutionary tech,” what comes to mind?

Major companies, start-ups, a laboratory on the brink of discovery – but what about nonprofits?

You read that right, nonprofits. We know nonprofits don’t often come top of mind as being “disruptive,” but we’re here to paint a new picture. Compassion has always been an important driver of innovation at Seva.

At Seva, we invest in a suite of cutting-edge and revolutionary technologies to create a world free of avoidable blindness. Leveraging millions of data points, four decades of experience, and a network of leading public health experts, engineers, and physicians, our best-in-class tech solutions revolutionize the way eye care is delivered worldwide.

“We operate at the scale of a major corporation and the nimbleness of a start-up. Straddling this balance is disrupting the future of ophthalmology and public health – for good”.

– Kate Moynihan, Executive Director, Seva Foundation.

This is the new frontier of compassion driven eye care tech that you support:

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SOOR AUR SAPTAK Celebrates 10 Years of Music, Dance and Transforming Lives!

Posted on by Seva Foundation
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Soor Aur Saptak

On February 27, Indian-American singing group Soor Aur Saptak (SAS) threw their 10th annual benefit concert for Seva! The event, which took place virtually this year, showcases the stunning beauty of Indian music, singing, and dancing. More than a thousand people watched the show. Viewers attended this program from the USA, India, Australia, Canada, Philippines, UAE, Czech Republic, and other places in Europe.  

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Meet our Vision Excellence Award Winners!

Posted on by Seva Foundation
A girl in Guatemala has her eyes examined. Photo by Joe Raffanti.

The International Association of Blindness (IAPB) created the Vision Excellence Award to commemorate the end of its 21-year global initiative, VISION 2020: A Right to Sight. In recognition of their life-changing, world-transforming work in the field of humanitarian eye care, IAPB has recognized a total of ten Seva team members and partners with the prize.

“On behalf of the whole Seva family, congratulations to these extraordinary sight leaders and practitioners,” says Kate Moynihan, Executive Director of Seva Foundation. “Seva staff and partners consistently set the standard for patient-centered vision care. Today’s award winners share the commitment and quality of work that brings access to sustainable eye care to millions of individuals and their communities worldwide. I can’t wait to see how – together – we will continue to change the world.”

Thank you for supporting Seva and making these incredible accomplishments possible!

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Do you know who trains the trainers?

Posted on by Seva Foundation
Celebrating Excellence in Eye Care Training for 12 years in July, 2019.
Celebrating Excellence in Eye Care Training for 12 years in July, 2019.

There are millions of people in the world in need of eye care services and not enough trained eye care professionals to provide care. Your generous support enables us to provide critical training for ophthalmic support staff. These individuals are professionally trained vision care workers who assist ophthalmologists and optometrists with routine clinical or non-clinical activities. With their assistance, ophthalmologists can focus on more advanced and complex cases. Together, they can provide care to more people, more efficiently.

But who trains the trainers? How do we make sure the teachers are giving their students the best information across the board? Eyexcel is how.

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