COMMUNICATIONS

CDHB Cataract Surgery Success

Being able to drive again at night to band practice is just one of the benefits of cataract surgery according to Barrie Young of Kaiapoi. That and being able to tell the difference between a hare and a rabbit from fifty paces (you need to be able to see their hind legs).

Under a recent government initiative aimed at lifting the number of cataract operations done nationally, the Canterbury District Health Board now has additional funding for cataract operations, bringing it into line with other regions. People who meet the requirements for state-funded cataract surgery are now receiving their operations within six months.

Mr Young who is, among many things, an amateur photographer, a saxophonist and a keen cyclist said, “ you don’t realise just how badly your eyes have deteriorated until you have your sight reinstated.”

He has nothing but praise for Canterbury District Health Board’s eye department and Clinical Director of Ophthalmology Professor Mark Elder. “They really looked after me. They made me feel very relaxed and the operation itself was over in less than an hour. And for me, the improvement was almost immediate.”

Professor Elder said, “one way to measure the cost benefit of an operation is in terms of ‘quality adjusted life years’. Cataract surgery is right up there, near the top because of the difference it can make to a person’s life. Enabling people to see again has a huge impact on independent healthy living.”

“With this additional funding from Government – and we certainly aren’t talking huge amounts here (about $700,000) – we have significantly increased the number of operations that we can do. For the 2006/07 financial year the Ministry of Health’s target for us is to do 991 operations. As of December we’re already done 537 – that’s 54 ahead of target.”

In conjunction with the initiative, a partnership between CDHB and other healthcare providers has resulted in a far more streamlined assessment process. “There is now much more community-based assessment by GPs and ophthalmologists,” said Professor Elder.

“Rather than waiting months for an outpatients’ appointment at the hospital, people are being assessed in the community and know within a matter of weeks whether they are eligible for an operation. Under this new system you know where you stand which, in many ways, is as important as a drop in the waiting time.”

ENDS