Health Minister Zahid Maleque has said that the government will help set up ‘vision centers’ in all sub-districts as a new World Health Organisation (WHO) report shows eye problems will rise dramatically globally.
Globally at least 2.2 billion people are suffering from vision impairment of whom at least 1 billion have the impairment that could have been prevented, according to the World Report on Vision launched in Bangladesh on Sunday.
It said eye conditions and vision impairment are widespread across the world, and far too often they still go untreated.
The Health Minister formally launched the report at an event organised at The Westin Dhaka by the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB), INGO Forum in Eye Health, and National Eye Care of Bangladesh government.
He also inaugurated a two-day workshop titled ‘World Report on Vision – Developing Bangladesh Action Plan’ at the same event.
Launching the report, he said the government will help set up vision centers, where primary eye care, glasses and medicine, referral and telemedicine services are offered, in all the upazilas of the country to make eye care services available to the grassroots people.
His assurance came after representatives of the institutions working for eye care said that they have established vision centers in 70 upazilas and will set up such centers in 130 other upazilas by 2022.
Maleque said around 4,500 physicians have recently joined government service and another 5,500 doctors will be recruited for facilitating prompt delivery of health services across the country.
The minister also claimed that the rate of blindness in Bangladesh among the 30 plus age group has declined to 1 percent from 4 percent years ago thanks to different steps of the government.
He laid emphasis on ensuring modern equipment, skilled manpower and awareness among the people about eye health problems to fight vision impairment.
The WHO report says population growth and ageing, behavioral and lifestyle changes, and urbanization, will ‘dramatically’ increase the number of people with eye conditions, vision impairment and blindness in the coming decades.
“The global need for eye care will [also] rise dramatically in the coming decades posing a considerable challenge to health systems,” it said.
According to the report, the costs of the coverage gap for unaddressed refractive errors and cataract globally are estimated to be $14.3 billion.
“These are the additional costs that would be required to the current health system using an immediate time horizon.”
It says the burden of eye conditions and vision impairment is not borne equally; the burden is greater in low- and middle-income countries and underserved populations, such as women, migrants, indigenous peoples, persons with certain kinds of disability, and in rural communities.
Prime Minister's former Health Affairs Adviser Prof Syed Modasser Ali, Health Services Division Secretary Asadul Islam, DGHS Director General Prof Abul Kalam Azad, and IAPB Country Chair for Bangladesh and Director General of Medical Education Prof AHM Enayet Hussain, among others, spoke at the report launching event.
IAPB Regional Chair for Southeast Asia Dr Taraprasad Das presented the keynote paper at the workshop.
Asia-Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology President (Elect) Prof Ava Hossain, DGHS former director general Prof Deen Mohd Noorul Huq, Ophthalmological Society of Bangladesh (OSB) President Prof Md Sharfuddin Ahmed, INGO Forum in Eye Health Chair Mohammad Mushfiqul Wara, National Eye Care Director Prof Golam Mostafa, Orbis International Country Director for Bangladesh Dr Munir Ahmed, and journalist Nayeemul Islam Khan spoke at the workshop on the first day.