• American Academy of Ophthalmology Humanitarian Awards
• FOCUS - Vital Ophthalmic Services in an Area of Extreme Need
• Living The Mission

• Foreign Ophthalmology Missions Day

"I NEVER felt so useful in all my life."
This is how one physician described his two-week experience as a FOCUS volunteer at the Mercy Hospital Eye Center in Abak, Nigeria.

That experience can be yours!

This page explains what FOCUS is and how you can apply your professional expertise in a vitally important and personally rewarding way.

What is FOCUS?
Founded in 1962 by three Chicago area ophthalmologists, FOCUS is a non-sectarian charitable corporation. It provides vital medical and surgical ophthalmic services and support in areas of extreme need by recruiting volunteer physicians, collecting donated medical supplies, and raising money to fund its work.

The first FOCUS volunteers served in Haiti. Later their work moved to Guatemala. For the past 21 years FOCUS has concentrated its efforts in a remote area of Nigeria. Endorsed by the Chicago Ophthalmological Society, FOCUS is headquartered at the University of Illinois Chicago Eye and Ear Infirmary.

• Providing Care in Nigeria
• FOCUS web site