Basically, Mali has the coolest optometrists in the world. They have a group of doctors that ride around on motorbikes from village to village, performing ten minute surgeries that prevent trachoma, a bacterial disease, to lead to permanent blindness. Trachoma is more likely to affect children and the women watching them. It is also the leading cause of blindness among the rural people of Mali.
Health workers screen people first and then send their findings and pictures to a central system. They hope to eradicate the disease by next year. The amount of children affected has dropped below five percent. Those most likely to be affected, like many other diseases, are those with poor access to water.
The doctors don't seem to have too much trouble treating patients. There isn't much push-back to fixing people's eyes. People are coming out of the woodwork because of the recommendations of others for this procedure. There are about 25,000 people in Mali still needing this quick fix surgery.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-28987319
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