Do Eye Bank Models and Competitive Practice Affect International Cornea Allocation?

Abstract

Purpose:International export and import of corneas is dependent on the stakeholders involved in the process and how those organizations engage to move corneas from one point to another. Our article presents the pathway of corneal donation from the export nation until its use in the import nation. It presents opinion on how aspects, such as competition and promotional behaviors, the use of online systems, and third-party engagement may influence allocation.Methods:We interviewed n = 92 international eye tissue and eye bank (EB) professionals to garner their opinion. We used saturation and sentiment methods to extract and consolidate group opinion.Results:Interviewees indicated that competitio..