Healdsburg ophthalmologist Dr. Gary Barth has dedicated a significant portion of his life and career to restoring sight to those in dire need, particularly in developing countries.
Last month, Dr. Barth hosted a program for the local community that took a deep dive into the landscapes and tales of India and Nepal, where for years he developed an organization and movement to restore eyesight to those whose vision has been impacted by cataracts. A gallery of his photos and those of others lined the CraftWork halls, providing the context for Barth’s moving tales of the humanitarian efforts of him and others in his network.
In particular, he recommended the 2016 HBO documentary, Open Your Eyes, by Irene Brodsky. It chronicles the journey of two Nepali residents as they confront a world blurred by cataracts due to extended exposure to the unforgiving, high-altitude Himalayan sunlight.
Shot in the span of just three days, the documentary followed the couple’s challenging descent down the mountains in pursuit of a dream — to see clearly once again.
The event brought together 80 guests and has raised over $50,000 to date, with donations still coming in (bbheye.org). These funds directly support life-changing eye-care programs, including cataract surgeries throughout Southeast Asia, and the creation of Primary Eye Care Centers (PECCs) in underserved regions of Nepal.
Cataracts are cloudy areas in the eye caused by over-exposure to UV rays, an especially common problem among people who live at high altitudes and in outdoor sports enthusiasts. Surgery is the only effective treatment for cataracts, but surgical facilities and professionals are hard to come by in developing parts of the world.
Barth, together with BBH Eye Foundation and partners, has helped restore sight to more than 200,000 individuals in Southeast Asia since 2019—an incredible number of lives improved by applied science. Barth himself became committed to this effort when as a Williams College student of Indian Art and Religion he went to India. “During the five months, I witnessed so much blindness that I redirected my studies to medicine,” he said.
Guests also heard moving stories from Barth’s “Cataract Chronicles,” highlighting his 25 years of humanitarian work among the people and cultures of India, Nepal, Cambodia, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Vietnam. There are now nine Chronicles live online on the BBH Eye Foundation website.
The BBH Eye Foundation is a nonprofit, humanitarian foundation that supports comprehensive eye-care services at no charge to low-resource communities in underdeveloped countries. It was founded in 2019 by Dr. Barth, Jack Blanks and Gary Hahn.
Dr. Barth also has an ophthalmology practice in Healdsburg at 640 Healdsburg Ave., where his focus on cataract surgery helps even wine country locals of any age improve their vision, and pierce the fog of blindness to see more clearly, and return to the path of their own life’s work.
