Laos has expressed interest in implementing the treatment model of Nepal’s Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology. During a free eye camp in Laos from February 5 to 7, Dr Sanduk Ruit, who led the Tilganga team, met with Laotian Health Minister Dr Bounfeng Phoummalaysith, who proposed the collaboration.

Dr Ruit said Phoummalaysith praised Tilganga’s success in delivering high-impact outcomes with limited resources and expressed willingness to replicate the model in Laos. As part of the initiative, Laos will send doctors, health workers, and technicians to Nepal for training, while Tilganga will dispatch expert teams to provide further guidance.

“Laos faces eye-related issues, including cataracts, at four times the rate of Nepal. They aim to address this by adopting Tilganga’s model,” renowned ophthalmologist Ruit said. “We will train their workforce to build capacity, after which they will implement the system.”

The initiative will receive financial backing from Australia’s Fred Hollows Foundation and the US-based Cure Blindness project.

Dr Ruit said that the partnership could extend beyond eye care. “Laos and Nepal share many similarities. Both are landlocked Asian nations with significant hydropower potential and a strong Buddhist heritage. Laos holds great reverence for Nepal’s Lumbini, the birthplace of Lord Buddha,” he said. “Laos exports hydropower to Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia—an area where Nepal can gain valuable insights.”

During the camp, Dr Ruit’s team, including Dr Bandana Khanal and technical and health staff, performed cataract surgeries on 265 patients, including 15 who had lost vision in both eyes.

A notable case was a 61-year-old chemistry teacher who had been blind for two years. After the surgery, he expressed immense joy at regaining his sight and the ability to teach again. “The next day, he could see clearly and was incredibly happy,” said Namkha Lama, an ophthalmic officer at Tilganga.

The eye camp was jointly organised by Nepal’s Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology, Singapore’s A New Vision, Laos’ Phongsavanh Foundation, and Mahosot Hospital, with support from Raju Shrestha, Nepal’s honorary consul general in Laos.