Sustainability resources for ophthalmology

EyeSustain's mission is to make healthcare delivery and services in ophthalmology more sustainable—both economically and environmentally.

Key Sustainability Topics in Ophthalmology

Sustainability in the Clinic

Turn your clinic into part of the solution.

Sustainability in the OR

Learn why addressing operating room waste is key to sustainability efforts.

Drug Waste

Reduce drug waste to save money and mitigate pollutants.

Global Green Practices

Explore best practices to shrink your carbon footprint.

The American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS), the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), the American Glaucoma Society (AGS) and the Outpatient Ophthalmic Surgery Society (OOSS) have jointly released a new position statement with recommendations for reducing topical drug waste with ophthalmic surgery.

Surgical facilities should be permitted to use topical drugs in multidose containers on multiple patients until the manufacturer’s labeled date of expiration if proper guidelines are followed.If applicable, surgical patients requiring a topical medication not used for other patients should be allowed to bring that partially used medication home for postoperative use.

These recommendations are based on published evidence and clarification of policies from regulatory and accreditation agencies with jurisdiction over surgical facilities.

New Study Raises Questions About Necessity of Common Eye Surgical Protocols

Many operating room protocols and regulations were developed for universal procedures but are not specific to cataract surgery. Is there evidence to suggest that cross contamination from a patient’s clothing or from other patients sharing the same OR poses a risk of endophthalmitis? Clinical trials are hard to design, but this study from Aravind did not find a difference in endophthalmitis rate when certain operating room protocols were temporarily modified during the COVID pandemic.

Industry Initiatives

See how leaders in ophthalmology are making sustainable impact in their practices and communities.

Public Health Impact of Climate Change

Get the latest resources and news from the Medical Society Consortium on Climate Health.

Sponsoring Societies

Participating Societies

Advisory and Editorial Board

David F. Chang, MD (chair), Advisory Board

Gitanjali Baveja, MD, Advisory Board

Barbara Erny, MD, Advisory Board

John Hovanesian, MD, Advisory Board

Oliver Findl, MD, Advisory Board

Cathleen McCabe, MD, Advisory Board

David Palmer, MD, Advisory Board

Alan Robin, MD, Advisory Board

Todd Sack, MD, Advisory Board

Cassandra Thiel, PhD, Advisory Board

Rengaraj Venkatesh, MD, Advisory Board

Aakriti Garg Shukla, MD (chair), Editorial Board

Evan Chen, MD, Editorial Board

Sjoerd Elferink, MD, Editorial Board