Global InformationOrbis International information
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| Formation | 1982 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Albert Lee Ueltschi, Betsy Trippe DeVecci, Thomas Knight, David Paton |
| Type | non-profit non-governmental organization |
| Focus | eliminating preventable blindness |
| Headquarters | New York City, U.S. |
Area served | Worldwide (92 countries as of 2012) |
Board Chair | John Howitt |
President and CEO | Derek Hodkey |
| Website | orbis |
Orbis International is an international non-profit non-governmental organization (NGO) dedicated to saving sight worldwide.[1][non-primary source needed] Its programs focus on the prevention of blindness and the treatment of blinding eye diseases in developing countries through hands-on training, public health education, advocacy and local partnerships.[2] Since 1982, Orbis capacity-building programs have enhanced the skills of 325,000 eye care personnel and provided medical and optical treatment to more than 23.3 million people in 92 countries.[3]
Orbis is a registered 501(c)(3) tax-deductible non-profit charity in the United States.[4] It was rated 4 stars on Charity Navigator in 2016[4] and was a Guidestar Gold Participant.[5] It is headquartered in New York, with offices in Toronto, London, Dublin, Hong Kong, Macau, Shanghai, Singapore, Cape Town and Addis Ababa.
Orbis' programs emphasise skills, training and self-sufficiency. The organisation spends approximately a year planning and coordinating with partner hospitals and local organisations, making preliminary visits to observe the local medical teams.[6] Its Flying Eye Hospital not only gives care to patients, but also provides training to local staff and delivers equipment and surgical supplies to ensure that local teams are able to continue to help people long after the plane has left the program site.[7] Cybersight, Orbis' telemedicine program, continues the training and mentoring relationships.[8] Orbis' intervention are tailored to local needs; Orbis trains local doctors in low-tech, low-cost yet effective methods to correct diseases of the eyes.[9]
In addition to the Flying Eye Hospital, Orbis operates hospital-based programs in several countries and works with local medical research and health-care organizations on blindness prevention and eye disease treatment.
Orbis is a founding partner, along with the World Health Organization, of VISION 2020: The Right to Sight, "a worldwide concerted effort designed to eliminate avoidable blindness by the year 2020."
- ^ Putty, Electric (2018-10-22). "CEO, Orbis International – John "Bob" Ranck". Orbis. Archived from the original on 2018-10-22. Retrieved 2018-10-22.
- ^ "Orbis International | International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness". Iapb.org. Retrieved 2016-08-23.
- ^ "ORBIS - Visual Impairment Data". Archived from the original on 2013-08-06. Retrieved 2013-08-06.
- ^ a b "Rating for ORBIS International". Charity Navigator. Retrieved 2016-12-14.
- ^ "Project Orbis International, Inc. - GuideStar Profile". Guidestar.org. Retrieved 2016-08-23.
- ^ "High-tech 'Flying Eye Hospital' visits Silicon Valley". Mercurynews.com. 11 August 2016. Retrieved 2016-08-23.
- ^ "Eye in the Sky: FedEx, Orbis Debut Third-Gen Flying Eye Hospital". Memphisdailynews.com. Retrieved 2016-08-23.
- ^ UK, Orbis. "Cindy Crawford Unveils Orbis's New Plane to Fight Blindness /PR Newswire UK/". Prnewswire.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-08-23.
- ^ "With Its Flying Hospital, This Group Is Saving The World From Blindness". Fastcomapny.com. 2016-07-15. Retrieved 2016-08-23.