On World Sight Day, Samsung to screen People in eye disease

By the end of 2023, Samsung’s Galaxy Upcycling programme hopes to have screened 150,000 people in India for eye diseases using the novel EYELIKETM Fundus Camera. This is in honour of World Sight Day.

As part of the Galaxy Upcycling programme, Samsung gives obsolete Galaxy smartphones a new lease of life in order to cut down on electronic waste and increase access to ophthalmic healthcare in underprivileged areas.

90% of those who reside in low- and middle-income countries who don’t have access to affordable, high-quality eye care are among the 1.1 billion people worldwide who are blind or partially sighted. To remedy this, Samsung has collaborated with the Yonsei University Health System (YUHS), the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB), and Lab SD, Inc. to convert outdated Galaxy technology into medical diagnosis cameras.

Through initiatives like Galaxy Upcycling, Samsung encourages users to lead greener lifestyles while also delivering cutting-edge technology that transform how we experience the world.

World Sight Day

The initiative has teamed with four eye hospitals to help with patient diagnosis.

in Sitapur, Uttar Pradesh, the Sitapur Eye Hospital

Pondicherry’s Aravind Eye Hospital

in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, Guruhasti Chikitsalya

New Delhi’s Dr.Charity Shroff’s Eye Hospital

The Galaxy device then analyses and diagnoses the photos for ocular problems using an artificial intelligence algorithm. The device connects to an app that, for a small fraction of the price of commercial instruments, reliably records patient data and recommends a treatment plan. The innovative and reasonably priced diagnosis camera can check patients for diseases like diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and age-related macular degeneration that may result in blindness.

“At Samsung, we think that technology can be used to improve society. Through the power of invention, we have been able to impact lives thanks to initiatives like Galaxy Upcycling. Our partners have been able to offer patients in India high-quality eye screenings thanks to the EYELIKETM Fundus Camera”.

The four partners have screened about 5,000 people for eye problems since the program’s inception in India. The EYELIKETM technology, according to partners, is simple to use, requires little training, is portable, and ensures a high-quality image. It makes it simple to identify the arteries, macular, and optic nerve. These advantages have allowed the partners to assist patients in rural areas with limited access to eye healthcare.

“IAPB is pleased with the EYELIKETM fundus camera we developed in cooperation with Samsung and LabSD. Our work emphasises how critical it is to encourage cross-sector cooperation in order to create a better future for everyone. As World Sight Day draws near, we are reminded that implementing the 2030 IN SIGHT strategy necessitates collaborating with emerging technologies in order to advance the cause, according to Drew Keys, Western Pacific Regional Manager, IAPB.

“EYELIKETM is the outcome of a partnership between leaders in the technology and healthcare sectors with the shared objective of removing obstacles to easily accessible and reasonably priced eye care. In order to make the platform sustainable and scalable, we are pushing the platform’s three core 2030 IN SIGHT strategic pillars: elevate, integrate, and activate,” added Holden.