OUR HISTORY
World Sight's story begins with the passion of an inquisitive resident physician and a supportive local community. While Dr. Ali Haider was an ophthalmology resident at the University of Louisville in Kentucky, he went to the chair of his department and asked if he could start an international rotation. “I’ll be the first one,” he said. “All you have to do is approve it.” His department chair agreed, but Dr. Haider had to fund the trip himself. He asked his local Lion’s Club to support him, and with nothing but a plane ticket, some simple medical equipment that fit in his suitcase, and the desire to help people instilled in him by his upbringing, he traveled to Pakistan; during this trip, he performed cataract surgery for days, utilizing a technique that did not depend on advanced technology; during this trip, Dr. Haider worked to restore the sight of approximately 120 people. He has returned every year since.
As the years passed, Dr. Haider continuously funded these trips independently, from his own pocket and with small grants from the Lion's Club. In order to reach more patients internationally, Dr. Haider would need more financial support for these types of trips; his answer to healing more patients came by way of Graham Cooke, incidentally one of Dr. Haider's own patients. As founder of Louisville’s legendary Hawley-Cooke bookstore, Graham claimed a successful business career; since he had just sold his life’s work to Borders, Graham was incidentally looking for a new calling. During his eye exam, Dr. Haider spoke about an upcoming medical trip casually, as he typically did with patients. Graham was inquisitive about Dr. Haider's work, but this was typical of Dr. Haider's Patient-Physician interactions, so he thought nothing of this until receiving an email from Graham a few weeks later while working in Dubai. The email simply asked, “Can I help you with your work?”
Graham was clearly impressed with this young doctor’s idealism and unstoppable commitment to helping those no one else could reach. When the two sat down to talk, Dr. Haider explained that the majority of blindness in Third-World countries can be corrected with a simple surgical procedure; they talked about the debilitating social and economic impact of blindness on families and communities in developing countries, where the visually impaired become a drain on resources because of their inability to contribute to the workload. Graham was impressed by the far-reaching impact 25 dollars could have on an entire community; he was convinced.
It was the undeniable logic of Dr. Haider’s work that ultimately led Graham to decide to devote the rewards of his retirement to this cause. He began organizing Dr. Haider’s work and with further discussion, "World Sight," seemed an appropriate name. Graham helped form "World Sight" as an official organization and began recruiting initial funding. He reached out to Morgan Stanley Financial Adviser and philanthropist, Dick Wilson. Dick was inspired by how much was being done by Dr. Haider, especially when considering the few resources Dr. Haider had been working with at the time. Dick was eager to get involved with the initiative. Together, Graham and Dick formed a board of directors and some very ambitious plans: to restore sight to the blind in inaccessible areas of developing nations.
World Sight’s goal is simple. The dream is to recruit physicians from city-centers within the developing world. These local physicians would then travel to remote areas within their country (where patients normally do not have access to surgical intervention) and they would perform cataract surgeries at a cost that is dramatically lower than bringing in personnel and equipment from more developed countries. These surgeries would be performed within preexisting infrastructure, as "pop-up" surgical centers, so that World Sight can operate as a mobile clinic. With the economic and business experience of Graham and Dick, and with Dr. Haider's passion for simply providing care, World Sight has come together developing clinics in Ghana, Iraq, Madagascar, and Tanzania; adding Pakistan and Puerto Rico in 2019. In addition, World Sight has recently entered a partnership with a new hospital in Karbala, Iraq, where the World Sight Eye Institute will be located.
World Sight is excited to continue providing care to those whom others have not reached. The goal is seven total clinics in 2020 and countless more fellow human beings with eye sight restored.
As the years passed, Dr. Haider continuously funded these trips independently, from his own pocket and with small grants from the Lion's Club. In order to reach more patients internationally, Dr. Haider would need more financial support for these types of trips; his answer to healing more patients came by way of Graham Cooke, incidentally one of Dr. Haider's own patients. As founder of Louisville’s legendary Hawley-Cooke bookstore, Graham claimed a successful business career; since he had just sold his life’s work to Borders, Graham was incidentally looking for a new calling. During his eye exam, Dr. Haider spoke about an upcoming medical trip casually, as he typically did with patients. Graham was inquisitive about Dr. Haider's work, but this was typical of Dr. Haider's Patient-Physician interactions, so he thought nothing of this until receiving an email from Graham a few weeks later while working in Dubai. The email simply asked, “Can I help you with your work?”
Graham was clearly impressed with this young doctor’s idealism and unstoppable commitment to helping those no one else could reach. When the two sat down to talk, Dr. Haider explained that the majority of blindness in Third-World countries can be corrected with a simple surgical procedure; they talked about the debilitating social and economic impact of blindness on families and communities in developing countries, where the visually impaired become a drain on resources because of their inability to contribute to the workload. Graham was impressed by the far-reaching impact 25 dollars could have on an entire community; he was convinced.
It was the undeniable logic of Dr. Haider’s work that ultimately led Graham to decide to devote the rewards of his retirement to this cause. He began organizing Dr. Haider’s work and with further discussion, "World Sight," seemed an appropriate name. Graham helped form "World Sight" as an official organization and began recruiting initial funding. He reached out to Morgan Stanley Financial Adviser and philanthropist, Dick Wilson. Dick was inspired by how much was being done by Dr. Haider, especially when considering the few resources Dr. Haider had been working with at the time. Dick was eager to get involved with the initiative. Together, Graham and Dick formed a board of directors and some very ambitious plans: to restore sight to the blind in inaccessible areas of developing nations.
World Sight’s goal is simple. The dream is to recruit physicians from city-centers within the developing world. These local physicians would then travel to remote areas within their country (where patients normally do not have access to surgical intervention) and they would perform cataract surgeries at a cost that is dramatically lower than bringing in personnel and equipment from more developed countries. These surgeries would be performed within preexisting infrastructure, as "pop-up" surgical centers, so that World Sight can operate as a mobile clinic. With the economic and business experience of Graham and Dick, and with Dr. Haider's passion for simply providing care, World Sight has come together developing clinics in Ghana, Iraq, Madagascar, and Tanzania; adding Pakistan and Puerto Rico in 2019. In addition, World Sight has recently entered a partnership with a new hospital in Karbala, Iraq, where the World Sight Eye Institute will be located.
World Sight is excited to continue providing care to those whom others have not reached. The goal is seven total clinics in 2020 and countless more fellow human beings with eye sight restored.