Research focuses on need for universal eye health coverage

“Universal eye health: a global action plan 2014-2019,” endorsed by the member states of the World Health Organization during the 2013 World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, sets a global road map for the development of eye care services. The need for further research was repeatedly highlighted in various sections of the eye health action plan specifically because of the recognized need to focus available resources toward the most cost-effective interventions and develop innovative approaches to prevent and cure eye diseases.The action plan addresses two areas of research: biomedical research, which is important in developing new and more cost-effective interventions, especially those that are applicable in low- and middle-income countries, and operational research, which provides evidence on ways to overcome barriers in service provision and uptake and improvements in appropriate cost-effective strategies and approaches for meeting ever-growing public health needs for improving and preserving eye health in communities.