Jeddah Eye Hospital has launched a special drive for eye care in the city with the aim to reduce waiting time and carry out a large number of operations at weekends.

The campaign is not confined to doing surgeries but deals with all sorts of ophthalmic issues. The doctors are forgoing their weekends to volunteer their services for the benefit of the public.

“This is the third time this year we have conducted this special drive to cut down the waiting list of patients,” said Dr. Salem Bahattab, director of the Eye Hospital. He added that his team had performed 120 cataract surgeries on Friday and Saturday.

Cataract cause loss of transparency in the lens of the eye leading to blurred vision. It is a major cause of blindness among the elderly in Saudi Arabia.

He said: “The Jeddah Eye Hospital has set up temporary operation theaters to carry out surgeries, in which 84 doctors and other paramedical personnel participated.”

He said that in the past it conducted 180 surgeries in special weekend drives.

The director told Arab News that the hospital will conduct such drives again in the near future to reduce long queues at the hospital and expedite ophthalmic operations for needy patients.

He added that doctors checked all patients a day before the operations as a prerequisite.

He commended the noble gesture of eye surgeons who worked weekends to serve patients.