Group Wants Imo Govt To Check Blindness

The Nigerian Optomet
ric Association, Imo State chapter, has called on the Imo State Government to help eye departments of the state’s health institutions to check blindness among the people.
Its chairman, Dr Chima Madu, made this known why briefing newsmen on Monday in Owerri on programmes slated for the state’s 2014 World Sight Day Celebration.
Madu said that out of the 27 council areas in the state, only seven optometrists were currently on government employment.
He said the number was grossly inadequate to penetrate the rural areas for proper counselling, awareness and sensitisation of the people on prevention of blindness.
The theme of this year celebration is “No More Avoidable Blindness”.
He observed that an approximate 285 million people worldwide live with low vision and blindness, adding that 246 million of this number had moderate or severe visual impairment.
Madu said that an estimated 19 million children were visually impaired.
Madu called on the government to be strongly involved in the fight against blindness by equipping the health institutions particularly the eye departments with modern eye treating equipment.
He said government should also involve in the training of optometrists and listed trachoma, cataract and glaucoma as among the primary causes of blindness.
“Blindness is something that can inflict an irreparable damage on one’s life.
“Losing sight at any point in time means losing one’s personality and all that one has projected in one’s life.
“Hence the need for proper counselling and awareness on the importance of good sight in one’s life,” he said.
The Optometrist decried the continued infiltration of quacks into the profession and enjoined newsmen in the country to assist in the crusade against it.