Orbis International, a Non-Governmental Organisation focusing on eye health, has held free eye screening in three communities of the Ahafo Ano South-West District in the Ashanti Region to commemorate World Sight Day.

The exercise was organised at Mankranso, Kunsu and Beposo, in collaboration with the Ghana Health Service, to mark the day, observed on October 13, each year. 

 

World Sight Day is to focus attention on the global issue of eye health by the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB). 

 

"Love Your Health," is the theme for this year celebration. 

 

Prior to the day, Orbis had organised screening for three special schools in the region; the Garden City Special School, Ashanti School for the Deaf, and Community Vocational Special School at Deduako. 

 

Madam Juanita Aryeh, the Programme Manager of Orbis International-Ghana, said beneficiaries of the exercise were given free treatment and eyeglasses where necessary. 

 

She said the team would refer those who needed further treatment to the appropriate facilities to save their sight, adding that Orbis would make follow up to ensure such persons were taken good care of. 

 

The organisation chose to attend to students in the special schools ahead of the celebration because it believed in inclusion and diversity.

 

"The goal is to make sure that nobody is needlessly blind by identifying cases as early as possible,” Madam Aryeh said.

“We are also educating the people to prevent avoidable blindness as much as possible."  

 

She said Orbis had been working closely the Ghana Health Service and Ghana Education Service among others in the Ashanti Region to provide eye care services to the public. 

GNA