Across the globe, cataracts are the leading cause of blindness and visual impairment, making cataract surgery one of the most commonly performed surgical procedures worldwide. But the surgical systems used in most developed countries and, in particular, their use of materials are unsustainable.

Sustainable Healthcare Coalition partner and Assistant Professor at New York University School of Medicine, Dr Cassandra Thiel has been studying the link between this common surgical procedure and environmental sustainability. Her results, published in an article in the Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, show that ophthalmologists and other medical specialists can reduce material use and emissions in medical procedures using a novel system in that is already in use in India.

In its mission to eradicate unnecessary blindness, the Aravind Eye Care System, in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, has sought ways to improve the accessibility and quality of cataract surgery while reducing costs, focusing on time efficiency and resource efficiency to develop an innovative and effective model of care. Using their procedures, Aravind performs 1000 surgeries per working day and 60% of these surgeries are delivered at minimum or no cost to the patient. With better clinical outcomes and lower complication rates than those achieved in the UK, Aravind, with its assembly-line model for surgery and its use of reusable instruments, serves as an example of more sustainable, efficient cataract surgery.

Thiel has been interviewed about her study by the American journal, Popular Science, which has commented that “the U.S. health care industry could learn a lot from India’s doctors”.