Operation Sight Volunteer | ASCRS
Foundation

Operation sight Volunteers

Volunteer with Operation Sight

You can help end treatable cataract blindness in the U.S. for those who cannot access or afford care. Become an Operation Sight Volunteer today!

The ASCRS Foundation partners proudly with ASOA. Our ASOA partnership is pivotal in our efforts to provide patients in need with charitable cataract surgery. 

New Volunteer Overview

Volunteer FAQ

Register as an Operation Sight Volunteer

Operation Sight Volunteer Process

Our goal is to make it simple for you to volunteer and change lives. Here's an overview of how our process works.

  1. Register to Be a Volunteer: Complete the Volunteer Form to register as an Operation Sight volunteer. Our team will reach out with more information.
  2. Patient Applies for Care: We take responsibility for pre-qualifying patients, completing paperwork, and managing all communication throughout the application, approval, and matching processes to reduce the burden on our volunteers. For more detailed information on this process, please visit our Patient Frequently Asked Questions. 
  3. Match: We match pre-qualified patients with a registered Operation Sight volunteer surgeon in their area. Volunteers can then choose to accept the patient's case based on the information provided.
  4. Charitable Surgery: Volunteers work with the patient and complete the charitable surgery.
  5. Documentation: Once surgery is complete, documentation is returned to the Foundation.
Register as an Operation Sight Volunteer

Patient Qualification

Here are the qualifications patients need to meet to be eligible for Operation Sight:

  • Must be at or below the 200% Federal Poverty Level defined by the Federal Poverty Guidelines. Documentation of household income and dependents must be provided.
  • Must be uninsured or underinsured when insurance does not cover cataract surgery. Patients who receive Medicare Part B are ineligible. The program does not pay or assist with copays.
  • Must have a formal cataract diagnosis within the past 24 months, where cataract surgery has been deemed medically necessary. Bilateral vision correctable to 20/40 or below is not deemed as medically necessary, unless otherwise noted.
  • Must be permanently residing in the United States. Applicants who are temporarily visiting do not qualify for the program.

Should your practice receive a direct request for charitable cataract surgery, you may refer the patient to Operation Sight for review and pre-qualification. Please direct them to our Patient Inquiry Form.

Volunteer Frequently Asked Questions

Thank You Operation Sight Locations for Changing Lives in 2022! 

Advanced Center for Eyecare Michigan Eye Institute
Advanced Vision Institute Milan Eye Center
Atwal Eye Care Minnesota Eye Foundation
Beach Eye Medical Group Minnesota Eye Institute
Berkeley Eye Center Nevada Eye Surgery
Boling Vision Center Operation Access
Center for Sight Foundation Operation Saving Sight
Central Florida Eye Specialists Operation Sight SC
Cleveland Eye Clinic Oregon Lions Sight & Hearing Foundation
Cohen Laser and Vision Center Outpatient Surgery Center of Boca
Dean McGee Eye Institute Select Eye Care
Deen-Gross Eye Institute Servants for Sight
Eugene Eye Care Serve the People
Eye Consultants of Atlanta Foundation Southeast Eye
Eye Surgeons of Richmond St. Louis Mission Cataract Foundation
Fishwell, Bakewell, Matlzman, Hunter, and Associates St. Mary's Ambulatory Surgery Center 
Georgia Center for Sight Surgery on Sunday
Hamilton Eye Institute  University of Utah (Moran Eye Center)
Houston Eye Associates Foundation Virginia Eye Foundation
I Care San Antonio Virginia Eye Institute
Kansas University Eye Center Vision Care USA
Levenson Eye Associates  Vision Harvest
Limestone Medical Center West Texas Eye Associates
Lusk Eye Specialists
Chu Vision Institute
Piedmont Eye Center
 Baptist Eye Surgeons
                                                                                                                           As of August 23, 2022.        
                       

Thank You Operation Sight Volunteer Surgeons for Providing Charitable Cataract Surgery in 2022!

Abraham A. White, MD
Joshua Cohen, MD
Adam R. Easterling, MD
Julie Quick, MD
Akbar Shakoor, MD
Justin M. Roman, MD
Aldo Espinoza, MD
Justus W. Thomas, MD
Aman Mittal, MD Kamran M. Riaz, MD
Amy Lin, MD Keith Riddle, MD
Andrew A. Kao, MD
Kenneth C. Ip, MD
Andrew E. Hack, MD
Kenneth Miller, MD
Andrew K. Bailey, MD
Kerry D. Solomon, MD
Andrew T. Melson MD
Kevin Y. Jong, MD
Anhtuan H. Nguyen, MD
Khan Irfan, MD
Anne B. Wishna, MD
Kurt F. Heitman, MD
Becky J. Fredrickson, MD, PhD
Kyle Ferguson, DO
Berdine M. Burger, MD
Landon Meekins, MD
Billy Haguewood, MD Larry P. Alexander, MD
Boa Truong, MD Leanne Wickliffe-Keisler, MD
Bradley Williams, Sr., MD
Leonardo Dacanay, MD
 Brian A. Hunter, MD
Lisa Martin, MD
Brian Firestone, MD
Lucy Bailey, MD
Brian R. Johnson, MD
Mahmoud A. Khaimi, MD
Brian Stagg, MD Mark C. Vital, MD
Brice B. Dille, MD
Mary Champion, MD
Bryan Lee, JD, MD
Matthew D. Neale, MD
Caroline Schmidt, MD Matthew Hartman, MD
Carolyn E. Kloek, MD
Matthew J. Weiss, MD
Cary M. Silverman, MD Megan Heil, DO
Charity H. Grannis, MD Michael P. Donahoe, MD
Chase A. Liaboe, MD Michael P. Graham, MD
Chia-Kai Chu, MD Mitchell M. Porias, MD
Corey J. Miller, MD
Nick Mamalis, MD
Craig J. Chaya, MD
Omar Shoukfeh, MD
Cynthia A. Bradford, MD
Paul M. Herring, MD
Daniel H. Chang, MD
Peter Daniel, MD
Daniel St. Aubin, MD Peter DeBry, MD
Daniel Y. Kim, MD Peter Knowlton, MD
David F. Chang, MD
Prajay Dhir, MD
David G. Gross, MD Rachel G. Simpson, MD
David Truong, MD Radwan Ajlan, MBBCh, FRCSC, FICO, DABO
 David W. Jackson, MD Read F. McGehee III, MD
Donald P. Glaser, MD
Regina L. Sun, MD
Douglas Kohl, MD Richard C. Boling II, MD
Edmund W. Trice, MD
Richard J. Ou, MD
Elizabeth Shen, MD Robert A. Rice, MD
Eric Niespodzany, MD Robert G. Reuther, MD
Ethnie Jones, MD Samih Elchahal, MD
Fiaz Zaman, MD
Samir A. Shah, MD
Glen C. Campbell, MD
Scott E. Laborwit, MD
Grover Robinson, MD Senthil Krishnasamy, MD
Harry A. Lebowitz, MD Seth R. Krawitz, MD
Jake K. Bostrom, MD
Shamik Bafna, MD
James D. Lehmann, MD Sherif Khalil, MD
Jason W. Much, MD
Stephen M. Hamilton, MD
Jeff Pettey, MD
Steven F. Lee, MD
Jeffrey H. Levenson, MD
Steven Tucker, MD
 Jeffrey Lusk, MD
Timmy A. Kovoor, MD
Jing Dong, MD Tom H. Sun, MD
Johannes C. Evans, MD
Tyler Goff, MD
 John E. Sutphin, Jr., MD
Victoria A. Bugg, MD
John G. Boatwright, MD 
Wade A. Reardon, MD
  John L. Swan, MD
Whitney S. Boling, MD
John M. Bell, MD
William C. Stewart, MD
 John M. Lim, MD, FACS
William H. Quayle, MD
Joseph P. Gira, MD
William R. Barlow Jr., MD
 Joseph R. Grubbs, Jr. MD
William Rosenberger II, MD
Josh E. Amato, MD Zachary Mendelson, MD
Joshua A. Atkinson, MD  Ralph Chu, MD
Adam Carrera, MD
Reena Patel, MD

                               Carol Johnston, MD                                                             Carol Drake, MD                              
As of October 6, 2022. 
 

Volunteer Spotlight: Reena N. Patel, MD

Operation Sight patient Barry Lewis explains “Dr. Patel saved more than just my eyesight. Dr. Patel and her staff saved my ability to live in this world. Not to be overly dramatic, but I was going blind.” Barry applied to the Operation Sight program after learning he had severe cataracts. Uninsured and unemployed at the time, Barry had no way of paying for the surgery. In a desperate search for help a friend of Barry’s found the Operation Sight program during a Google search and helped Barry apply.

Once approved, Barry was matched with volunteer surgeon Reena Patel, MD, at Wichita Vision Institute in Wichita, Kansas. “It was exciting to get my office staff and surgery center staff involved in the process. We had a poster and brochures in our office, and a lot of patients were curious and asked about the Operation Sight program. They were excited to learn we were offering this service to patients in need and some even referred patients.

Here is Dr. Patel's advice for those thinking about becoming an Operation Sight volunteer: ”Remember why you chose this profession. To help people. The joy I receive from watching these patients and seeing the positive impact I have on their lives reminds me why I chose to get into medicine. There is so much that we juggle daily, and we get mired down by regulations, EMR, support staff, and a thousand other things that are not necessarily why we went into ophthalmology. My Operation Sight patients remind me that we are so fortunate to be able to make a direct impact in someone’s life in a short amount of time. Being involved with Operation Sight won’t slow you down. In fact, I believe it will make you love your job even more."

Dr. Patel explains, “as one individual, how can I make a difference that can impact a life and do some good? If I can help just one more person see better, that person can be a productive citizen, can help their family, which can help my community, which can turn into a snowball effect.”

Operation Sight Volunteer Resources

Patient Information

Share Your Stories With Us

  • We're interested in your stories! Share stories of grateful patients or your volunteer experience with the Foundation team! Email us at info@ascrsfoundation.org or tag us @ascrsfoundation in your social media posts! Your stories may be featured in upcoming Foundation highlights.

Promote Your Participation

  • Download our Operation Sight volunteer badge of honor to display in your office
  • Download an Operation Sight Patient Resource to share with referring medical practices and organizations (customizable version available here)
  • Download digital swag to promote your practice's participating on social media
  • Post on social media! Tag the ASCRS Foundation on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn or Twitter (@ASCRSFoundation) use our hashtags #Operation Sight

Support Operation Sight

  • Add a link to our donation page (www.ascrsfoundation.org/donate) to your practice's website.
  • Contact us if you would like to setup a personalized fundraising page, branded for your practice, to benefit Operation Sight. We will send you free custom business cards with your practice and fundraising page listed to give to potential donors.

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