Community health workers effective as first line of care for corneal abrasions
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Key takeaways:
- Community health workers helped identify and treat patients with corneal abrasions.
- Out of more than 45,000 patients, 97% had 4-day corneal abrasion resolution.
A program that includes community health workers can serve as the first line of care for corneal abrasions, according to research presented at Real World Ophthalmology.
Shivani Majmudar and colleagues wrote that 5% of patients with corneal blindness in India can attribute their condition to treatable ocular trauma or infection.
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“In 2017, the nonprofit SightLife established a corneal blindness prevention program that trains community health workers (CHWs) to offer early detection and treatment of corneal abrasions before permanent visual loss occurs,” they wrote.
The researchers analyzed data from 4 years of the program to assess the efficacy of CHWs as first-line care for the treatment of corneal abrasions. The study’s primary outcome measures included 4-day abrasion resolution rate and referral rate to partner eye hospitals.
Over the 4-year period, 960 CHWs screened 76,505 patients. Out of 45,353 patients diagnosed with corneal abrasions, 97.17% had resolution within 4 days with antibiotic treatment and the rest were referred to partner eye hospitals for higher-level care.
Majmudar and colleagues wrote that their findings show that CHWs can serve effectively as the first line of care for the treatment and identification of corneal abrasions. There are also efforts to expand the program.
“A capacity capability maturity model was developed to guide expansion into new geographic settings based on patient demand, local infrastructure and stakeholder investment,” they wrote.
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Majmudar S, et al. Preventing corneal blindness: Empowering community health workers to bridge gaps in care. Presented at: Real World Ophthalmology; April 15, 2023 (virtual meeting).
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