Passenger Experience Week announces partnership with Orbis

Leading event for the passenger experience industry announces support for global charity that operates the world’s only flying eye hospital on board an MD-10 aircraft

The organisers of Passenger Experience Week – bringing together four leading events at the Hamburg Messe from 1-4 April 2019 – have announced that they will once again partner with Orbis UK, a charity which fights avoidable blindness around the world.

With around 18,000 visitors attending Passenger Experience Week’s revered Passenger Experience Conference (PEC), Aircraft Interiors Expo (AIX), World Travel Catering & Onboard Services Expo (WTCE) and Passenger Technology Solutions (PTS), there is no better place for Orbis to raise awareness of its unique Flying Eye Hospital and its award-winning online training and mentoring platform, Cybersight.

Additionally, the 550-plus exhibitors showcasing their services during AIX will be urged to consider ways in which they can support Orbis UK’s vital sight saving work. Of the 253 million people in the world who are blind or visually impaired, 75% have conditions that are preventable or treatable, so Orbis screens for and treats eye conditions, raises awareness about eye health, and trains and mentors local eye care teams.

Nilly Sutton, Head of Corporate Partnerships at Orbis UK, said: “Partnering with Passenger Experience Week is a fantastic platform for us to raise awareness of our services among the aviation, rail and cruise industries.

“At Orbis, we believe that no-one should be blind due to lack of quality eye care. With the number of people affected by avoidable blindness due to triple by 2050, our work has never been more vital. We hope our partnership with Passenger Experience Week will encourage others to come and talk to us and find out how they can get involved in eliminating avoidable blindness together.”

Speaking about the partnership, Polly Magraw, Event Director of AIX, added: “Over the past five years alone, Orbis has delivered over 28.6 million medical or optical treatments, over 15.7 million eye exams and over 386,000 eye surgeries or laser treatments either on-board the Orbis Flying Eye Hospital or through Orbis supported health facilities, and we are delighted to be helping the charity continue this fantastic work around the globe.”

The Orbis Flying Eye Hospital is a teaching hospital on board a customised MD-10 aircraft. It is a fully-integrated training facility, with an operating theatre, recovery room, and audio-visual equipment that transmits live surgeries to a 46-seat classroom at the front of the plane. Every year, the Flying Eye Hospital visits countries around the world, partnering with local hospitals to deliver specialist training, carry out treatments, and raise vital awareness about the importance of eye health.

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