Jordan News Agency (Petra) - Her Royal Highness Princess Basma Bint Talal on Wednesday opened a new branch of the Shami Eye Center in Aqaba and called on patients treated for free at the clinic under a partnership with the Goodwill Campaign (GWC) which Her Royal Highness chairs.

The partnership, launched 5 years ago, aims to provide eye care and treatment to needy persons across the Kingdom. Over the past few days, 20 persons from the southern region underwent free-of-charge eye treatments at the center.

In 1991, HRH Princess Basma Bint Talal launched the GWC in response to the political, economic and social conditions that faced Jordan as a result of the Gulf War.

The GWC, a flagship program of the Jordan Hashemite Fund for Human Development's (JOHUD), now provides long-term and sustainable support, medical and emergency assistance, improved shelter, in addition to interventions aimed at empowering poverty-stricken groups.

Princess Basma said she cherishes the targeted humanitarian partnerships between the campaign and the Jordanian private medical sector, to serve patients whose economic conditions deny them access to the necessary medical care.

The Princess thanked the medical and nursing staff who oversaw the treatment of the GWC-sponsored patients and followed up on them until they made a full recovery and returned to their families.

"The medical services provided to patients of the GWC in private medical institutions, including the Shami Eye Center, are a quantum leap in their lives, putting an end to their suffering, and enabling them to lead their lives normally," Her Royal Highness said.

Princess Basma praised the Jordanian private medical sector, which, along with the public sector, provides advanced medical care to patients, and at the same time reflects Jordan's reputation in this field at the regional and international levels.

In turn, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Shami Eye Center, Omar Shami, said that the center is committed to participating in campaigns and free medical days organized by the campaign in various regions of the Kingdom.

He stressed that the center is committed to its partnership with the charity campaign to serve its humanitarian goals and mission and to provide optimal treatment for patients.

For his part, Dr. Omar Zoubi, an ophthalmologist at the center, indicated that the operations that the patients underwent at the clinic included corneal cross-linking (CXL) and cataract surgeries.