Worldwide, 16 million people are blind because of cataracts and the burden of blindness is higher in developing countries and Nepal is no exception.
Cataract surgery has become one of the most common cost effective ambulatory elective surgical procedures as a result of increased technology and anesthesia costing less than $20. However, in many parts of the world, people are still in darkness, unable to utilize this technology.
Many studies show the magnitude of cataract prevalence in the community including a few studies published from Nepal, but no study has been carried out in this country to assess the willingness to pay for this sight giving procedure. Hence this study was carried out for the first time in Nepal to determine patients’ willingness to pay for cataract surgery.
