Correcting the vision gap: from delayed diagnosis to timely care
Vision is our window to the world. Yet millions of people worldwide live with, or are at risk of, vision loss due to retinal diseases. [1] This number is expected to rise due to aging populations, non-communicable diseases like diabetes and widening health inequity gaps. [2,3] Despite advances in the management of retinal conditions, many patients do not regain functional vision due to late diagnosis, treatment challenges and barriers to timely access to care. [4,5] In the face of this significant and growing burden, we are convening experts from the community to discuss the urgent need to reform eye health policy from the patient and health system lens.
On the sidelines of the World Health Assembly in Geneva, we’re bringing together leading voices from global health, patient advocacy and industry for a dynamic, solutions‑focused conversation on why eye health policy must evolve and what it will take to get there. This moderated discussion will explore:
Where the greatest unmet needs lie across the eye health pathway and why they persist
How diagnosis and care standards must modernize to meet today’s realities
What a more integrated and community‑driven approach to the diagnosis and care of eye conditions could unlock for patients and health systems
Speakers will include:
Dr Patrick Bussfeld – Global Head of Medicine, Eye Health, Boehringer Ingelheim
Dr Stuart Keel – Technical Officer, Vision and Eye Care Programme, WHO
This event is organized by Boehringer Ingelheim - please click here to check out all of our events at the 79th World Health Assembly
GBD 2019 Blindness and Vision Impairment Collaborators & Vision Loss Expert Group of the Global Burden of Disease Study. The Lancet Global Health. 2021. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/langlo/article/PIIS2214-109X(20)30489-7/fulltext
Yeo D. et al. British Journal of Ophthalmology. 2025. https://bjo.bmj.com/content/early/2025/11/12/bjo-2025-327917.long
World Health Organization. WHO World Report on Vision. 2019. https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/328721/WHO-NMH-NVI-19.12-eng.pdf. Accessed April 2026.
Rahhal, F., et al. Ophthalmol Ther 2026. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40123-026-01329-w
Thompson AC., et al. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2015. https://iovs.arvojournals.org/article.aspx?articleid=2396444