Wa, (UW/R)-Ghana, Oct. 14, GNA – Bliss Eye Care, a private Eye Clinic in Wa, has offered free eye screening to public and private sector workers in the Wa Municipality to mark this year’s World Sight Day (WSD).
A total of 473 people, most of whom are educational sector workers, went through the eye screening with 108 of them having normal eyes.
Also, 298 of them had refractive error and were given eyeglasses, 53 had pathological conditions, and 14 had cataract and glaucoma.
Speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) after the exercise, Dr. Zakarea Al-hassan Balure, the Manager of Bliss Eye Care, said the choice to collaborate with the Wa Municipal Education Directorate was due to the role teachers played in molding children into responsible adults.
He urged the public not to only rely on free eye screenings to get their eyes checked.
Dr Al-hassan said: “For all you know, the time you are waiting for that free screening the conditions you are sitting with are worse and your eyes are gone.”
“Occasionally visit the facility to have your eyes screened. We are encouraging people to make regular eye screening a habit and a part of them,” Dr. Balure explained.
He encouraged every person to see eye screening as a habit and to do that at least once a year for early detection and treatment of one’s eye conditions.
The Eye specialist discouraged people from resorting to traditional eye treatment practices such as hanging ropes around their necks as that had not been proven to be effective in curing one’s eye problems.
Mr Suleman Halim Sichumu, who went through the eye screening, thanked Bliss Eye Care for the screening and the reading glass given to him.
“My problem is actually about reading, I have difficulty in reading small font sizes, but I was told during the screening that it is a natural process for anyone who is aging, so what I need is assistance to enable me read,” he told the GNA.
He said two of his wards had also been screened and referred to the health facility for further check-ups and encouraged the public to take eye screening seriously since someone could have eye problems without knowing.
World Sight Day is observed every second Thursday of October to re-echo the need for people to make eye care a priority.
Data from the World Health Organisation (WHO) indicates that at least 2.2 billion people have a near or distance vision impairment globally and that almost half of those cases could have been addressed or have not yet been addressed due to lack of access.
This year’s WSD, which was on the theme: “Love Your Eyes at Work”. The theme sought to emphasise the importance of observing protective measures for one’s eyes to minimize workplace hazards against the eyes as well as observing regular eye screening.
