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Optometry Giving Sight Nepal project making progress
An initiative aiming to provide comprehensive eye health services to children from poor communities in Nepal, funded by Optometry Giving Sight, has reported excellent progress after 6 months of operation, according to an organization press release.
The initiative, called the Sight Conservation of Children from Marginalised Communities of Nepal Project, was created by the Nepalese Association of Optometrists (NAO), and participants have successfully examined nearly 1,500 children, with glasses and low vision devices provided to those in need, the release said.
Although the eye camps’ primary target was children, more than 320 local adults were also screened and treated, according to the release.
“Many people from rural parts of Nepal are not aware of eye health, and the services are not close, so people do not often get services from qualified health professionals,” NAO President Subodh Gnyawali said in the release.
Health promotion campaigns were held at each site for this reason, according to the release.
“More than a thousand people from the communities have been made aware of eye health because of the campaigns,” Gnyawali said. ‘This is expected to increase the demand for eye health services, which will in turn help to lower the burden of eye problems in the community.”
Despite some significant challenges, such as poor quality roads, power shortages and a larger number of children than expected, the results so far are positive, the release said.