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EnglishWhat Is Georgia Eye Bank, Inc.?
Updated
Georgia Eye Bank, Inc. (GEB) is a nonprofit eye bank based in Georgia that recovers, processes, and provides donor eye tissue for transplantation and eye research. It serves transplant recipients, donor families, and medical professionals, and reports having provided more than 65,000 sight-restoring corneas since 1961, with over 2,000 corneas supplied for transplant each year.
What Georgia Eye Bank Does
Its stated mission is "improving vision and lives through transplantation of ocular tissue and cells, innovation, research, education, and collaboration to advance treatments and patient outcomes." In practice, that work breaks down into a few core functions:
- Recovering donor eye tissue — coordinating with donors and donor families to obtain corneal tissue.
- Processing tissue — evaluating and preparing tissue so it is suitable for surgery or study.
- Providing tissue for transplant — supplying corneas for corneal transplant operations.
- Supporting research — supplying ocular tissue and cells for studies of corneal disease and ophthalmic care.
The organization also engages in education and collaboration with healthcare providers and researchers.
Who It Serves
| Audience | What GEB offers |
|---|---|
| Donor families | Information about eye donation and correspondence with recipients |
| Transplant recipients | Information about receiving donated tissue and correspondence with donor families |
| Medical professionals | Tissue requests, plus details on accreditation, registration, safety, and quality |
| Researchers | Donor eye tissue and cells for eye research studies |
Scale and Track Record
GEB reports two headline figures:
- 65,000+ corneas provided since 1961
- 2,000+ corneas provided for transplant each year
It also states that over 90% of all corneal transplant operations successfully restore the recipient's vision — a general figure about corneal transplantation rather than a GEB-specific outcome guarantee.
History and Oversight
Georgia Eye Bank has operated since 1961. It began at Grady Hospital in downtown Atlanta, with the Lions Clubs of Georgia and the Georgia Lions Lighthouse Foundation playing key roles in its founding and early growth. In 1974, it became an affiliate (the source excerpt cuts off at this point). The organization also references its relationship with the EBAA (Eye Bank Association of America), the professional body that accredits eye banks in the United States.
How to Get Involved or Get Help
The site organizes its main pathways as Give, Our People, About Eye Donation, For Medical Professionals, Request Tissue, Contact Us, Career Opportunities, and News. If you want to register as a donor, learn about donation as a donor family, request tissue as a clinician, or ask about receiving a transplant, those sections are the starting points. GEB lists a phone number, 1-800-342-9812, for contact.
Key Takeaways
- Georgia Eye Bank is an eye bank, not a hospital or clinic — it supplies tissue rather than performing surgery.
- Its two main outputs are corneas for transplant and ocular tissue for research.
- It has operated since 1961 and reports 65,000+ corneas provided and 2,000+ per year.
- Donor families, recipients, medical professionals, and researchers each have dedicated information and contact paths.