Delivering high quality visual care: Fundación +Luz

Fundación +Luz was created out of Dr. Arturo Chayet passion for preserving vision for all, regardless of their economic status. In 1987, Dr. Chayet began providing affordable ophthalmological services to patients who otherwise not afford the quality of care that Dr. Chayet and his colleagues at CODET Vision Institute were providing. To support this work, Dr. Chayet officially created Fundación +Luz in 1988 as a non-profit organization. Fundación +Luz is located in Tijuana, Mexico, and serves the socioeconomically challenged populations of Mexico and Baja California.

At Fundación +Luz, we focus on delivering high quality visual care, with warmth and compassion to reduce the incidence of blindness among culturally and economically vulnerable populations. We make sure that people with limited economic resources are given access to high quality visual healthcare. This, along with early detection of disease and access to excellent specialist care, helps prevent avoidable blindness and allows patients the chance to lead an independent life improving their quality of life.

At Fundación +Luz, we focus on three service areas:

1. Early or Timely Detection:

We promote a culture of visual healthcare and prevention of disease through information dissemination. We create awareness amongst our patients about early and timely detection to avoid blindness pathologies. Early detection services include:

1. Daylong community visits for diagnosis and detection.
2. Training for community networks.
3. Mobile Ophthalmology clinic – via the Fundación +Luz fully equipped mobile clinic.

2. Ophthalmologic Services which include:
   1. General Ophthalmology consultations.
   2. Subspecialty Ophthalmology consultations – (Retina, Glaucoma, Anterior Segment, Cornea, Pediatrics & Oculoplastic)
   3. Specialized surgery studies using state of the art technology.
   4. Consultations and community resources for vision correction.
3. Fellowship:

To ensure a long-term future of preserving vision and early detection for the populations that we serve, Fundación +Luz operates a fellowship programme that provides training for visual care specialists in different ophthalmologic areas monitored by CODET Vision Institute expert doctors. The programme is very competitive and accepts between 12 and 15 fellows each year.

At Fundación +Luz, we are proud of the work that we do. In 2021, we made a big impact on vision health and quality of life:

• Fundación +Luz provided more than 22,320 ophthalmology services.
• 10,978 general and highly specialized ophthalmology consultations were carried out at low cost.
• 3,114 free post-operative consultations were performed.
• 1,205 surgeries of various specialties at low cost and 13 free emergency surgeries.
• 182 cataract research studies were conducted.
• 100 refractive research studies for myopia were conducted.
• 6,723 specialized studies at low cost, 78 of which were free. Equipment is used in these studies, providing quality and accurate diagnoses.

And we look forward to doing even more in the years ahead, and we are sure that being members of IAPB will increase our reach to share our mission and expand our services to more and more people that need it.