The journey of what was to become one of the leading specialist eye hospitals in Sub-Saharan Africa began in 2009 when Upper Hill Eye and Laser Centre (UHEAL), a state-of-the-art eye diagnostic centre equipped with an ultramodern eye theatre, opened its doors to patients at Upper Hill Medical Centre in Nairobi.
UHEAL, led by Dr. Kibata Githeko, an Ophthalmologist specializing in Paediatric and Vitreo-Retinal Surgery, recognized the urgent need for early intervention in diabetic eye complications. In partnership with the World Diabetes Foundation, UHEAL launched an eye care foundation to serve underserved communities through outreach clinics.
City Eye Hospital (CEH) is established to serve the growing demand for quality and affordable eye care. Conveniently located along Ngong Road, CEH was initially launched as an affiliate of UHEAL. Three years later, UHEAL acquired CEH. The merger saw the UHEAL branch at Upper Hill Medical Centre transformed into CEHā€™s Appointment-only Clinic and the Ngong Road branch into CEHā€™s walk-in Main Hospital.
To improve the number of well-trained eye care professionals in the region, CEH launched its training department to provide a rotational centre that equips students with the latest techniques in ophthalmic practice, starting with ophthalmic nursing students at the Kenya Medical Training College in 2017 and ophthalmology resident students at the University of Nairobi in 2019.
Noticing how much our patients appreciated the convenience of having state-of-the-art eye care in an exceptionally welcoming environment locally, CEH began to expand outside the capital, opening two new branches in Nyeri Town and Ngong Town, as part of the hospitalā€™s expansion plan grounded in improving access to quality and affordable eye care for those residing outside the capital.
CEHā€™s evolution as a leading eye hospital in East Africa continues. Currently, CEH comprises three ultramodern facilities and a vision centre. The hospital has over 90 highly-trained staff members, including full-time eye specialists (retinal and cataract surgeons). CEH handles the full range of routine and complex eye procedures, conducting 3,000-4,000 surgeries annually. The hospital also now has an in-house Ophthalmic Training Programme.