Clare Gilbert is a British ophthalmologist, professor and researcher who focuses on

blindness Visual impairment, also known as vision impairment, is a medical definition primarily measured based on an individual's better eye visual acuity; in the absence of treatment such as correctable eyewear, assistive devices, and medical treatment� ...

in children. She is based at the

London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) is a public research university in Bloomsbury, central London, and a member institution of the University of London that specialises in public health and tropical medicine. The inst ...

(LSHTM).

Education, training and experience

Gilbert was born in Croydon and educated at

Croydon High School for Girls Croydon High School is an independent day school for girls located near Croydon, London, England. It is one of the original schools founded by the Girls' Day School Trust. History The school was founded in 1874 in Wellesley Road just north of t ...

( GPDST). She qualified in medicine at Bristol University in 1976. After qualifying, she worked as a clinical ophthalmologist in

Bristol Eye Hospital Bristol Eye Hospital is a specialist ophthalmic hospital in Bristol. It is part of the University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust. The University of Bristol Dental Hospital is adjacent, and the Bristol Royal Infirmary The Br ...

for 3 years, obtaining FRCOphth, and then in Leeds and Bradford for 7 years. She then worked for an MD (equivalent to a PhD) in the Department of Pathology at the Institute of Ophthalmology (IoO), London (1987-1990). During this time she took part in a clinical trial of Mectizan for the treatment of onchocerciasis in Sierra Leone. She has a Masters in Epidemiolology from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (1995). In 1990, she joined the International Centre for Eye Health (ICEH), Department of Preventive Ophthalmology at the IoO. Cite web , title=Clare Gilbert , url=https://www.lshtm.ac.uk/aboutus/people/gilbert.clare , access-date=2022-08-25 , website=LSHTM , language=en In 2002 the group moved to the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. Gilbert co-directed ICEH between 2002 and 2020. Gilbert was appointed as Professor of International Eye Health in 2008.

Research

Gilbert's research focus is on the frequency, causes, and control of blinding eye diseases in children in low and middle-income countries; glaucoma in Africa, and integrating primary eye care for children into primary health care in Africa. One of Gilbert's contributions was to develop a system for classifying the causes of blindness in children in collaboration with the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of ...

(WHO). Data collected led to this becoming one of the priorities of the global strategy of WHO and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB), the ''VISION 2020 - the Right to Sight'' strategy, as well as the development and planning of eye care programs for children in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Gilbert has also researched on

retinopathy of prematurity Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), also called retrolental fibroplasia (RLF) and Terry syndrome, is a disease of the eye affecting prematurely born babies generally having received neonatal intensive care, in which oxygen therapy is used due to ...

(ROP), a blinding eye condition that can affect infants born preterm. Cataracts and refractive errors in children, and integrating eye care at the primary level into primary level health care are other areas of research interest. Other areas of Gilbert's research include national population-based surveys of blindness and visual impairment in

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

, and Sri Lanka,

glaucoma Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that result in damage to the optic nerve (or retina) and cause vision loss. The most common type is open-angle (wide angle, chronic simple) glaucoma, in which the drainage angle for fluid within the eye rem ...

, and school eye health. Gilbert also initiated and led a large-scale pilot projects for ROP and for diabetic retinopathy in India, supported by the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust between 2012 and 2019. Gilbert has published almost 400 papers in peer-reviewed journals and has written 27 book chapters. She has also supervised and examined 15 Ph.D./MD students.

Teaching

Gilbert has taught at the IoO and on the Masters in Public Health for Eye Care at the LSHTH. She teaches on the Diploma in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, and has contributed to several massive online open-access courses (MOOC), including one on retinopathy of prematurity.

Technical advisor

Gilbert is a technical/scientific advisor to a number of organisations, including the WHO; USAID's Child Blindness Program; the International Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus Council; the School Eye Health Rapid Assessment project,

USAID The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 bi ...

; iHOPE, Welcome Trust, India; Velux Stiftung, Switzerland;

Sightsavers Sightsavers is an international non-governmental organisation that works with partners in developing countries to treat and prevent avoidable blindness, and promote equality for people with visual impairments and other disabilities. It is based in ...

; and the Vision Impact Institute. She has been involved with a number of working groups for the IAPB and led the development of school eye health guidelines for low and middle-income countries.

Other roles

Gilbert is currently cochair of the ethics committees at LSHTM.

Awards

* Honorary Fellow, West African College of Surgeons, 2004 * Outstanding Contribution, International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, 2004 * The Pfizer Visiting Professor Award, 2010 * International Prevention of Blindness Award, American Academy of Ophthalmology, 2011American Academy of Ophthalmology website
/ref> * Pisart Vision Award, Lighthouse International, 2012 * L’Occitane Sight Award, L’Occitane Foundation, 2013 * Jules Francois Golden Award, International Council of Ophthalmology, 2016 * Lifetime Achievement Award, Royal National Institute for Blind People, 2017 * Barrie Jones Lecture and Award, Royal College of Ophthalmologists, 2018 * SPROP Prevention of Blindness Award, Sociedad Panamericana de Retinopatía del Prematuro, 2019 * 2020 Power List - Top 100, The Ophthalmologist, 2020 * Vision Excellence Award, International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, 2020 * Honorary Fellowship, Royal College of Ophthalmologists, 2021 * 2021 Power List - Top 100 Women in Ophthalmology, The Ophthalmologist, 2021

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilbert, Clare Year of birth missing (living people) Living people British ophthalmologists Vision scientists Women vision scientists Women ophthalmologists