Ophthalmologist, Member of Council
Thursday, October 14 and October 15 marked the observance of World Sight Day (WSD) and White Cane Day (WCD) respectively.
WCD, which is observed on October 15 each year, has been commemorated in the US since 1964 and is now observed worldwide. WCD draws attention to the white cane as a symbol of mobility and independence, celebrating the achievements of people who are visually impaired or blind. According to the World Blind Union, WCD recognises the movement of blind people from dependency to full participation in society.
WSD has been observed annually since 1998 and was integrated into the Vision 2020: The Right to Sight initiative, which was launched in 1999. It is an international day dedicated to raising awareness about the causes and prevention of avoidable blindness. The initial aim was the elimination of avoidable blindness by the year 2020. Although the Vision 2020 landmark has come and gone, the goal of eliminating avoidable blindness remains.
Globally, at least 2.2 billion people have visual impairment, mainly from conditions that could be prevented or treated.
Our best estimates of visual impairment in T&T are based on the National Eye Survey conducted in 2013-2014, which reported an adjusted prevalence of distance visual impairment of 5.65 per cent, including blindness in 0.73 per cent. Given the latest population estimates of 1.4 million, this equates to approximately 79,000 visually impaired people, including 10,200 blind people living in T&T.
Most of these cases of blindness are avoidable: Glaucoma (32 per cent), cataract (29 per cent) and diabetic retinopathy (19 per cent) account for 80 per cent of blindness in adults, with untreated retinopathy of prematurity accounting for 6.3 per cent of avoidable blindness, in children between the ages of five and 17 years. Uncorrected refractive error (49 per cent) and unoperated cataract (27 per cent) account for the majority of moderate to severe visual impairment.
In T&T, WSD was first observed in 2001. The 2021 WSD theme is Love Your Eyes, the focus being to motivate everyone to protect their own eye health, get regular eye examinations and encourage others to do the same. Our WSD message is to do what is necessary to prevent sight loss, and to protect, preserve and prioritise vision.
Prior to the onset of the pandemic, the highlight of local WSD observances was the much-anticipated Walk for Sight event.
This year, due to COVID-19 public health restrictions, there was no physical Walk for Sight but WSD was commemorated in other ways. The T&T Blind Welfare Association (TTBWA), with the support of the Ministry of Social Development and Family Services (MSDFS) marked the most important day in the global eye health calendar, with the official launch of the TTBWA’s first ever client registration card. At a brief ceremony hosted by the MSDFS to mark the occasion, the honourable minister of social development and family services presented the first two beneficiaries with their cards.
The TTBWA client registration card, which is renewable every three years, will facilitate efficient, accurate and up-to-date data collection to effectively guide allocation of these funds and improve the TTBWA’s service to its clients. The card will also be used to receive discounts from various service providers who have partnered with the TTBWA and have pledged support to the blind and visually impaired community.
Nearly everyone will experience an eye health issue in their lifetime. Significant progress has been made in acknowledging the impact of eye health on education, employment, quality of life, poverty and many other UN sustainable development goals.
In an unprecedented achievement at the 75th United Nations General Assembly in July, the UN unanimously adopted its first ever resolution on vision, “Vision for Everyone; accelerating action to achieve the sustainable development goals.”
The resolution aims to achieve global access to eyecare and to include those with visual impairment in all stages of policy-making and decision-making. Additionally, at the 74th World Health Assembly in May, two new ambitious global targets for eyecare were endorsed a 30 per cent increase in effective coverage of cataract surgery, and a 40 per cent increase in effective coverage of refractive errors by 2030.
This year’s WSD observances with the theme Love Your Eyes, provides a platform to advocate for the Government of the Republic of T&T to implement the UN resolution and abide by its endorsement of the WHA targets to increase eye care coverage for its citizens.
This will go a long way towards attaining the objectives of Vision 2030: The National Development Strategy of T&T 2016-2030.