Taking the fear out of eye surgery: A doctor's view from Mozambique

At Central Hospital Beira in Mozambique, an eye surgery appointment can be a frightening prospect. Patients arrive having heard alarming rumours about what happens in hospital. Some attend a first consultation and never return.

Dr Tiago Machissa, Head of Ophthalmology at the hospital, has seen what changes when fear is treated alongside the eye condition itself. Since 2018, the department has offered psychosocial support to ophthalmology patients and their families: counselling before and after surgery, help understanding a diagnosis, and someone to turn to at the hardest moments.

The results speak for themselves. Fewer patients abandon their treatment. Fewer miss their surgery. Families arriving in despair, particularly those whose children face serious diagnoses, find someone who can plan both the treatment and the acceptance of it.

It is understood to be the only service of its kind in Mozambique. Dr Machissa believes every hospital with an ophthalmology department should have one.

Light for the World is a longstanding partner of Central Hospital Beira, supporting training, equipment and infrastructure. Between 2021 and the end of 2025, our "1,2,3... I Can See!" programme provided hospital consultations for more than 186,000 Mozambican children, with more than 2,500 receiving surgery.

Effective child eye health takes a team well beyond ophthalmologists. This is one of the unsung roles that makes it work.

Learn more: https://www.light-for-the-world.org/news/psychosocial-support-child-eye-health/