Tema-Ghana, Nov. 3, MNN – Dr. Kwame Oben-Nyarko, Chief Executive Officer of Third Eye Care and Vision Center has urged the public to refrain from acquiring spectacles from the wayside table-top dealers at the lorry stations and from street vendors.
Dr Oben-Nyarko explained that “spectacles (glasses) are visual aids usually used to enhance the quality of vision and protect the eyes from exposure to direct contact to several environmental factors which could be detrimental to the eyes of the individual. “Therefore buying it from the wayside vendor could end up destroying your eyes”.
Speaking in: “Acquiring a pair of spectacles: What you need to know,” Dr. Oben-Nyarko explained that spectacles are used for the correction of several conditions including doubling of vision and latent and manifest deviations of the eyes, therefore, acquiring them from the wayside could rather endanger your eyes.
Dr. Oben-Nyarko said this at Ghana News Agency-Tema Regional Office and the Ghana Optometric Association fortnightly public sensitization initiative “GNA-GOA: My Eye! My Vision!
The fortnight initiative is a collaborative public education advocacy campaign to promote the need for people to access eye care and also to draw attention to vision health.
The GNA-GOA: My Eyes! My Vision! The initiative also seeks to challenge the public and policymakers to focus on vision as a health issue, which forms a critical component of mankind’s well-being but is often neglected.
“You will find street vendors and pharmacies vending spectacles. However, these outfits do not have the required professionals and training necessary for dispensing spectacles so it is improper to select such places as the place of choice for acquiring spectacles,” he warned.
Dr. Oben-Nyarko urged the public to acquire spectacles from either an eye clinic or an optical shop, stressing that the eye clinic usually has departments that test for the spectacle prescription, display the spectacle frames and fit the lenses into frames.
He explained that to acquire a spectacle, one must go through several tests performed by the optometrist for a prescription to be arrived at.
“A proper eye examination will not only give the spectacle prescription but can also expose other conditions that could be present but showing no symptoms like glaucoma, hypertension, and diabetes,” he said.
Dr. Oben-Nyarko advised the general public that even though these processes may sound cumbersome, it is good to know the needs of a person before prescribing a spectacle yet, it was not ethical to get glasses from street vendors or pharmacies which have unaccredited eye clinics.
Dr. Alfred Gardemor, GOA Public Relations Officer advised that Children’s eye screening must be a periodic health activity to save them from future complications, kids also have eye problems just like adults.
He explained that for children who do not have frequent eye care from optometrists’ potential eye disorders may not be detected on time and when not identified early and treated may affect their performance in school.
Dr. Gardemor who is a Principal Optometrist and Head of the Optometric Center at the Nsawam Government Hospital spoke on the topic; “Children’s Vision and Eye Health”, and noted that the first schedule of eye screening for children should be at six months, and subsequently at three years, and the third examination should be before the child enters school.
