Solomon Islands
Ridged with mountainous landscapes and surrounded by coral reefs, much of the population is geographically isolated from health care services.
What are the eye health problems?
The challenges of delivering health care in Solomon Islands reflect those across other nations in the Pacific region. With low spending on health, low ratios of doctors and nurses to population, poor health infrastructure, environmental vulnerability, and geography that isolates much of the population from health services it can be extremely difficult to receive essential health care.
Our work in Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands has a local eye care workforce trained by us at the Pacific Eye Institute in Fiji and operating from various hospitals and eye clinics across the country.
All Foundation-trained eye doctors and most of the Foundation-trained nurses are based at the Regional Eye Centre in Honiara, which we built, in 2015. With this facility providing increased surgical capacity, the team is working towards eliminating the cataract backlog and helping to address other eye conditions. An outreach team from Honiara provides support to the other eye nurses placed throughout the country, helping deliver eye care services to their communities.
The Regional Eye Centre is off-the-grid, producing energy through its solar panel system.
Progress in sight
- Dr Carole Poloso graduated in 2019 from the Pacific Eye Institute with a Master of Medicine in Ophthalmology.
- In 2017, a national survey assessing the rates of avoidable blindness was conducted. The results from this survey will provide valuable information which will help us assess the impact. The Foundation has had on eye care in the country to date and inform the development of our programme going forward.
2022 Key Highlights
- 8,411 consultations provided.
- 984 diabetic retinopathy screenings conducted.
- 644 sight-saving surgeries performed.
- 234 diabetic retinopathy treatments provided.
- 1,348 spectacles were dispensed.
- 8 outreaches made eye care services accessible to remote communities across Solomon Islands.
- 62 eye care clinicians attended relevant eye care trainings, workshops, and participated in continuing professional development.
- 59 local eye care clinicians from across the country attended the National Eye Conference conducted at the Regional Eye Centre.
*services were disrupted in 2022 due to COVID-19 outbreak restrictions.