HelpMeSee

The inspiration for the HelpMeSee campaign began in the late 1970s when Founder Albert Lee Ueltschi of FlightSafety International (FSI), the world's leading aviation training company, dedicated himself to fighting blindness in the developing world. He was convinced that training local ophthalmologists who remained in their own communities was the answer.Al, who also co-founded and led the global nonprofit Orbis International known for its "Flying Eye Hospital," led the effort to outfit Orbis’s original McDonnell Douglas DC-8 airplane and later, its successor, the DC-10 wide-body. For the first time, volunteer ophthalmologists could reach out to all corners of the globe to treat avoidable blindness of all types and strengthen eye care practices in developing countries through training.However, Al realized that while the Flying Eye Hospital program continued to do great work, it lacked the scalability needed to provide access to the millions of cataract-blind — the leading cause of treatable blindness globally.Emboldened by Al's history, accomplishments, and legacy, our mission has broadened to train local cataract specialists in Manual Small Incision Cataract Surgery (MSICS) in significant numbers to meet the increasing demand for surgical services in the communities most impacted by cataract blindness.To achieve this, we developed and are deploying high-fidelity eye surgery simulators, adapted from the successful experience of commercial airline simulators, to provide the resources needed to educate these cataract specialists in the large numbers needed.Our goal is achieved when all communities living in austere conditions have access to the essential cataract surgical care they require – care that provides the best quality outcomes that is focused on patient safety.